Tel Aviv hospital begins to digitally train trauma caregivers in response to war
The Ichilov initiative is supported by a generous donation from New York Federation UJA, allowing expanded access to Israel's southern and northern periphery
Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center Ichilov initiated an innovative digital training program as a response to an overwhelming amount of Israelis suffering physical or psychological injuries, as a result of the war, and are in need of caregivers and professionals.
The program is supported by the New York Federation (UJA), which has provided funding of $600,000 for the initiative. This will allow the Tel Aviv hospital to expand its new Post-Trauma Treatment Center beyond the center of Israel and into the southern and northern periphery.
"The rehabilitation hospital will be led by leading experts in the fields of physical rehabilitation, emotional trauma, and PTSD,” CEO of the Tel Aviv Medical Center, Professor Ronni Gamzu, said in a statement.
The training we will conduct will include theoretical studies alongside prolonged clinical experience, using the most advanced technologies. We are grateful to the New York Federation and its CEO, Mr. Eric Goldstein, for their deep partnership and support,” Prof. Gamzu added.
Israel’s Health Ministry estimated that thousands of Israelis (and possibly more, according to other estimates) will suffer from post-traumatic symptoms after the shock of war, as well as many suffering from physical injuries as a result of the October 7 attack and subsequent battles.
The Tel Aviv Medical Center in particular has stated that its initiative will focus on psychological trauma treatment, guided by two principles of making the treatment as “accessible as possible to many caregivers and professionals,” and “providing personalized training in emotional trauma treatment for specific roles in the community and professional settings.”
Those being trained will include family doctors and pediatricians, to specific training for para-medical teams, paramedics, first aiders, medical students, teachers, etc. and the content of the training will be personally tailored to the treated population, described as trauma-focused therapy for soldiers and civilians with PTSD, treatment for complex trauma including sexual trauma, treatment for neurological symptoms accompanying combat trauma, trauma treatment during and after pregnancy, and treatment for children and adolescents.”
"In light of the immense needs generated by the current war, it is crucial to significantly expand the national trauma response both in the community and in hospitals, and the first and most urgent step is to support the training of hundreds of trauma care providers,” Director General of the UJA Federation of New York’s Israel office, Itzik Shmuli, said in the press statement.
“This grant is part of our larger strategy to support trauma relief nationally, for which we have already approved $5.8 million dollars in grants,” he concluded.