Volunteer Profile: Adam Hadas (MEYERS ’17)
April 15, 2020
Adam Hadas (MEYERS ’17) serves on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic as an emergency and critical care nurse at NYU Langone Health. Prior to nursing, Adam was a professional actor and performed in classical pieces and musical theatre throughout the East Coast, and even did a brief acting stint in London. Currently, he lives in Astoria, Queens with “his amazing fiancé and can't wait to get married in October!”
As a healthcare professional, Adam is grateful to be of service to the Meyers community through the Meyers Alumni Association Board and his work organizing volunteer initiatives that care for vulnerable populations. Adam states, “I wish the NYU community safety and health during this challenging time. Please continue your social distancing, as hard as it is, and please keep healthcare workers and all the incredible people providing essential services in your thoughts.”
Meet Adam
How did your NYU education prepare you for the current crisis?
NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing is an exceptional nursing school. We’re trained to think critically and holistically about clients and clinical situations. At the center of our work as nurses is the human being for whom we’re caring. One of my favorite professors always told us, "If you don't know what to do, first breathe, then wash your hands." Hand washing is one of the most critical actions any of us can take right now to combat the spread of COVID-19.
As someone on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic in New York, what would you say to current NYU students preparing for a career in healthcare?
Welcome to the team! You've chosen an incredible career. Serving people when they're ill and vulnerable can be severely challenging, demoralizing, and downright depressing. But mostly, you’ll be constantly amazed, enriched, and awestruck by your patients and colleagues each day you work in an environment where you live and see the human experience in ways few people get to do. You’ll see humanity in all its beauty—and all its ugliness. And you’ll participate in a very special, rewarding profession that should make you proud to be alive and fight for the health of your species.
What is your favorite memory from your time at NYU?
My time at NYU hasn't stopped since I started, and my NYU experience just gets better and better!
Why do you stay involved with NYU?
The NYU Meyers faculty, staff, and administrators are some of the most wonderful and dedicated people I've worked with. They've made NYU my home, and it's just a lovely place to be!
Why do you give back to NYU?
NYU has given me so much. I used to be an actor who struggled to earn a living and always needed a second full-time job to support my dreams. NYU was my doorway to the nursing profession, and NYU continues to open doors to me. If I have the opportunity to give back a fraction of what NYU has given me, I'm all in!
What's been your proudest moment serving on the Meyers Alumni Association Board?
A couple of months ago, we honored Sylvia Williams (MEYERS '76) as this year's recipient of the Estelle Osborne Legacy Award. Sylvia is a colleague on the Board and has devoted her career to enriching the nursing profession. She, like my other colleagues on the Board, is an inspiration. The panel discussion before the award ceremony was provocative, illuminating, and inspiring, and I’m so proud, honored, and humbled to be surrounded by such incredible human beings. I get to work with them!
Did you have any NYU classes or instructors who inspired or impacted you?
Oh, this is tough. You know, I would frequent the fourth floor at Meyers after classes and chat with all the professors and deans. I still do! I can't single anyone out. They’re all my favorite!
What is your favorite:
Food? I really miss these delicious pasta dishes from the restaurant Trattoria Zero Otto Nove: the mafalde con salsiccia e provola and radiatori in cartoccio. So delicious!
Book? The Emperor of All Maladies is one of the best reads I've had in a long time.
TV show? I didn't know Hell's Kitchen was a show until several months ago. My fiancé and I watch it constantly. “It's raw!”
Movie? The Lion King. Forever.
Song and/or musical artist? Sara Bareilles. If our wedding happens as scheduled in October, our first dance will be to "You Matter to Me" from the musical Waitress!
Way to spend a Saturday? Home-cooked food, family, friends, music, board games, and the outdoors!
Place to travel? The Netherlands. The Van Gogh Museum is my favorite. It’s so thoughtfully designed and organized. Amsterdam is great, and the surrounding towns, particularly Utrecht, are serene and beautiful!
Place on the NYU campus? NYU Meyers obviously! It’s far removed from the Washington Square campus, but that's what I know!