Israel
Sheba Medical Center Will Host & Quarantine Returning Diamond Princess’ Israeli Citizens
Posted Feb. 18, 2020. Special to the JP&N. Note: The following story is an update to a story which was posted Feb. 17 and which can be read following this story:
Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer will host those Israeli citizens who had been confined to the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan during the past few weeks, and who’ve not exhibited coronavirus symptoms. The ill-fated vacationers will be flown back to Israel on a special flight, hopefully arriving by the end of this week, and sent to Sheba Medical Center, where they will be fully examined and treated by a specially trained medical staff.
The Israelis will be quarantined for up to two weeks in comfortable quarters on the Sheba campus, at a distance from the main hospital complex, allowing for the medical center to function in a normal manner.
“We are working closely with the Japanese government, the Foreign Ministry and emergency services to safely bring home the Israeli citizens. We are also working to ensure the safety of all Israeli citizens as well. We have instructed Sheba how to deal with the challenging logistics involved, Israeli Health Minister Rabbi Yaakov Litzman said.
Sheba has already prepared a strategy for treating corona patients with various high-tech means, including a robot that can enter the patient’s room and which is controlled by medical staff from outside the room. Designed by California-based virtual healthcare company Intouch Health, the robots are already in use in other departments, such as in the ICU of pediatric cardiology and the Trauma Unit. “This technology is the perfect solution to provide care for inpatients infected with coronavirus, while protecting staff from contagion,” said Galia Barkai, head of telemedicine services at Sheba.
In addition, the bed in the quarantine rooms is equipped with a sensor under the mattress that can monitor body heat and movement which are conveyed to a central screen and viewed by the medical team.
In the event of large numbers of infected patients who are not severely ill, Sheba will use a very sophisticated telemedicine app that will enable patients to receive treatment at home. With the app, patients to enter vital signs and other information which is directly accessed by their doctor. Patients can also establish contact with their physicians at any time of day or night.
The telemedicine app is currently being used with Israelis who returned from China and who, according to Health Ministry instructions, must be in quarantine for 14 days, the incubation period of the virus. Doctors initialize contact with the patients twice a day. “This is one instance where telemedicine can protect staff as well as other patients, by minimizing direct contact with those infected,” Barkai explained.
Prof. Elhanan Bar-On, the Director of Sheba’s Center for Emergency Medicine said, “The center’s medical professionals are well prepared to deal with any national health or medical emergency. As such, we stand ready to assist and treat our citizens in a professional manner.”
Israel Prepares for Coronavirus Epidemic with Apps, Robots
By BEN HORODENKER (Special to the JP&N Posted Feb. 17, 2020)
Amid conflicting predictions and mounting dread about the arrival of the coronavirus in Israel, Sheba Medical Center is preparing for it with different high-tech means: a telemedicine app that enables patients to receive care in the isolation, but comfort, of their own home; and robots that can treat in-hospital patients in order to minimize contact with staff.
Sheba’s Datos Health-In is a telemedicine app which enables patients to remain in isolation at home. In the event of an epidemic, with more patients than isolation rooms available, the app can be a viable tool for patients who are not severely ill. With the app, patients can enter vital signs and other information which is directly accessed by their doctor. Patients can also establish contact with their physicians at any time of day or night.
The program was launched on February 9 and tested on Israelis who had been in China and who, according to Health Ministry instructions, must be in quarantine for 14 days, the incubation period of the virus. Doctors initialize contact with the patients twice a day. “This is one instance where telemedicine protects staff as well as other patients, by minimizing direct contact with those infected with the coronavirus,” explained Galia Barkai, head of telemedicine services at Sheba.
Another high-tech solution for patients possibly infected with the coronavirus is a robot which can enter the patient’s room and be controlled by medical staff from the outside. Designed by California-based virtual healthcare company Intouch Health, the robots are already in use in other departments, such as in the ICU of pediatric cardiology and the Trauma Unit. “This technology is the perfect solution to provide care for inpatients infected with coronavirus, while protecting staff from contagion,” said Barkai.
On Tuesday, Sheba ran its first drill in its new field hospital, a modular unit that can be erected in a nearby open area and used for treating coronavirus patients. The unit would include a special area for examining those suspected of contracting the virus, as well as an isolation area for those who test positive.
Screening for the virus involves produces results in just a few hours. But with symptoms that are not very dramatic and more reminiscent of flu, including fever, cough, and shortness of breath, Israel’s Health Ministry allows only those who have returned from China and a few other countries in the Far East to be tested. At the time of this writing, no arrivals from China or the Far East have tested positive.
Israel
Join the Masa Canadian Professionals Volunteers Program!
You are invited on a 4-week volunteer program in Israel from October 14th to November 10th. Help rebuild Israeli society post-October 7th over Canadian Thanksgiving, Sukkot, and Simchat Torah. Spend three weeks based in Tel Aviv and one week based in Eilat!
This program is exclusively for Jewish professionals aged 22-50, working at Jewish organizations or remotely in any field.
The cost of the program is $150 USD to the organizer and $50 USD to Masa. Participants will receive a Masa grant of $2650 USD that is applied to participation and to cover additional costs. The cost of the program includes housing, meals while volunteering, transportation on travel days, health insurance, leadership training, and more. Volunteers are required to commit to the volunteer schedule, with the understanding that there will be the flexibility to work remotely for 8 specific days during the program. Flights are not included but you get a 15% discount from El Al.
Sign up here: https://www.masaisrael.org/go/canada-jp/ space is limited!
Don’t miss this unique opportunity to make a difference and connect with fellow professionals. For more information, contact Mahla Finkleman, National Manager of Partnerships and Outreach, Masa Canada, atmfinkleman@ujafed.org and/or Sam Goodman, Senior Manager of Israel Engagement, sgoodman@ujafed.org.
Save the Dates for Info Sessions:
- Thursday, September 5th, 12:00 – 12:30 EST
- Wednesday, September 11th, 12:00 – 12:30 EST
Join us in Israel for a meaningful and impactful experience with Masa!
weeks based in Tel Aviv and one week based in Eilat!
This program is exclusively for Jewish professionals aged 22-50, working at Jewish organizations or remotely in any field.
The cost of the program is $150 USD to the organizer and $50 USD to Masa. Participants will receive a Masa grant of $2650 USD that is applied to participation and to cover additional costs. The cost of the program includes housing, meals while volunteering, transportation on travel days, health insurance, leadership training, and more. Volunteers are required to commit to the volunteer schedule, with the understanding that there will be the flexibility to work remotely for 8 specific days during the program. Flights are not included but you get a 15% discount from El Al.
Sign up here: https://www.masaisrael.org/go/canada-jp/ space is limited!
Don’t miss this unique opportunity to make a difference and connect with fellow professionals. For more information, contact Mahla Finkleman, National Manager of Partnerships and Outreach, Masa Canada, atmfinkleman@ujafed.org and/or Sam Goodman, Senior Manager of Israel Engagement, sgoodman@ujafed.org.
Save the Dates for Info Sessions:
- Thursday, September 5th, 12:00 – 12:30 EST
- Wednesday, September 11th, 12:00 – 12:30 EST
Join us in Israel for a meaningful and impactful experience with Masa!
Features
New website for Israelis interested in moving to Canada
By BERNIE BELLAN (May 21, 2024) A new website, titled “Orvrim to Canada” (https://www.ovrimtocanada.com/ovrim-en) has been receiving hundreds of thousands of visits, according to Michal Harel, operator of the website.
In an email sent to jewishpostandnews.ca Michal explained the reasons for her having started the website:
“In response to the October 7th events, a group of friends and I, all Israeli-Canadian immigrants, came together to launch a new website supporting Israelis relocating to Canada. “Our website, https://www.ovrimtocanada.com/, offers a comprehensive platform featuring:
- Step-by-step guides for starting the immigration process
- Settlement support and guidance
- Community connections and networking opportunities
- Business relocation assistance and expert advice
- Personal blog sharing immigrants’ experiences and insights
“With over 200,000 visitors and media coverage from prominent Israeli TV channels and newspapers, our website has already made a significant impact in many lives.”
A quick look at the website shows that it contains a wealth of information, almost all in Hebrew, but with an English version that gives an overview of what the website is all about.
The English version also contains a link to a Jerusalem Post story, published this past February, titled “Tired of war? Canada grants multi-year visas to Israelis” (https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-787914#google_vignette) That story not only explains the requirements involved for anyone interested in moving to Canada from Israel, it gives a detailed breakdown of the costs one should expect to encounter.
(Updated May 28)
We contacted Ms. Harel to ask whether she’s aware whether there has been an increase in the number of Israelis deciding to emigrate from Israel since October 7. (We want to make clear that we’re not advocating for Israelis to emigrate; we’re simply wanting to learn more about emigration figures – and whether there has been a change in the number of Israelis wanting to leave the country.)
Ms. Harel referred us to a website titled “Globes”: https://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=1001471862
The website is in Hebrew, but we were able to translate it into English. There is a graph on the website showing both numbers of immigrants to Israel and emigrants.
The graph shows a fairly steady rate of emigration from 2015-2022, hovering in the 40,000 range, then in 2023 there’s a sudden increase in the number of emigrants to 60,000.
According to the website, the increase in emigrants is due more to a change in the methodology that Israel has been using to count immigrants and emigrants than it is to any sudden upsurge in emigration. (Apparently individuals who had formerly been living in Israel but who may have returned to Israel just once a year were being counted as having immigrated back to Israel. Now that they are no longer being counted as immigrants and instead are being treated as emigrants, the numbers have shifted radically.)
Yet, the website adds this warning: “The figures do not take into account the effects of the war, since it is still not possible to identify those who chose to emigrate following it. It is also difficult to estimate what Yalad Yom will produce – on the one hand, anti-Semitism and hatred of Jews and Israelis around the world reminds everyone where the Jewish home is. On the other hand, the bitter truth we discovered in October is that it was precisely in Israel, the safe fortress of the Jewish people, that a massacre took place reminding us of the horrors of the Holocaust. And if that’s not enough, the explosive social atmosphere and the difference in the state budget deficit, which will inevitably lead to a heavy burden of taxes and a reduction in public services, may convince Zionist Israelis that they don’t belong here.”
Thus, as much as many of us would be disappointed to learn that there is now an upsurge in Israelis wanting to move out of the country, once reliable figures begin to be produced for 2024, we shouldn’t be surprised to learn that is the case – which helps to explain the tremendous popularity of Ms. Harel’s website.
Features
Message from a Palestinian in Gaza to protesters: “You’re hurting the Palestinian cause”
A very brave Palestinian who was willing to put his name to paper and write an article for Newsweek Magazine has exposed the utter hypocrisy of all those students – and others, who have been setting up encampments across the U.S. – and now Canada, too.
You can read the article at https://www.newsweek.com/message-gazan-campus-protesters-youre-hurting-palestinian-cause-opinion-1894313
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