Treating An Acute Stress Reaction That Resulted From a Medical Trauma — Psychological First Aid In Action

Posted on December 24, 2019 by Raphael Poch

Irit Ravid is one of United Hatzalah’s Psychotrauma Crisis and Response Unit (PCRU) responders. She is ready to assist someone suffering emotional or psychological distress at any time of the day or night. A recent medical emergency occurred on her moshav, Nahala, in which her psychotrauma training made all the difference.

 

Irit RavidThe incident took place on a recent Friday afternoon.  A grandmother was walking down the steps out of the house when she tripped on a stone and fell, landing awkwardly and striking her head. She began to bleed profusely from significant facial wounds. The frightening fall was witnessed by her two grandsons, aged ten and thirteen. The two boys ran into the house, calling urgently for help. Their mother came rushing out, immediately calling for an ambulance.

 

Irit received the alert and (despite being some distance away) responded to the call. She arrived to find several other medics already on-site treating the injured woman. However, Irit’s trained eye immediately noticed the ten-year-old boy. He was shaking and crying, suffering in the throes of a severe panic attack. His agitated parents and family members, already overwhelmed by the grandmother’s condition, were unable to handle the boy’s acute stress reaction and were alternating between being impatient, irritated and nominally sympathetic.

 

Irit took off her orange vest so as not to intimidate the child as she firmly cleared everyone away from him and guided him to a quieter spot. Sitting beside him, she encouraged him to breathe deeply and guided him through breathing exercises until he could control his racing breathing. She listened to him empathetically as he described the frightening, bloody scene and commended him for his fast, mature response. “You went to call for help, and EMTs came to help your grandmother all because of you,” she told him. “Now she’s in good hands getting the treatment she needs.” Irit continued talking soothingly with the boy for a full half-hour as he slowly recovered. Finally, he was able to focus and talk about practical matters. A calm, level-headed and caring aunt arrived to look after the young boy and Irit left the home, satisfied that the child had support should he need it.

 

Irit paused outside to talk to the older brother for a few minutes, ensuring that he too was okay, before finally leaving the family.

 

Such an incident could have long-term effects on this impressionable child. Irit’s prompt intervention on-site ensured that he was able to process what had happened in a healthier way, preventing further emotional trauma and the possible onset of PTSD or other emotional disorders in the future. This is just one small example of how this life-changing unit is enabling its volunteers to reach out and be there for others when medical traumas occur. 

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Dramatic CPR on Train Saves A Life

Posted on December 24, 2019 by Raphael Poch

United Hatzalah paramedic Liad Ohana was traveling by train from his home in Ofakim to Tel Aviv on Monday morning when he heard screams coming from the seat behind him. A man had collapsed and was unconscious. Liad immediately rushed over to the man checked his pulse and having found none, began compressions. 

Liad Ohana at a training drill (illustration)

 

“I was on my way to report for military reserve duty when I heard screams coming from right behind me. I rushed over to the man who had collapsed. He was in a state of agonal breathing. I began chest compressions while I instructed those around me to call for help. After a few minutes, the man’s pulse returned. Emergency medical teams from the train as well as an ambulance team rushed to the nearest station where they waited for the train to arrive.” 

 

One of the passengers pulled the emergency brake and the shift supervisor of Israel Railways identified the location of the train and sent the emergency shift manager at HaHagana station to board the train. He brought a defibrillator onboard but the man had already returned to consciousness. The machine was not used. As the man was in stable condition the train continued to Savidor station where an ambulance team awaited to take the patient to the hospital. 

 

Ohana added: “I have never seen a situation quite like this before. After a few rounds of compressions, the man regained his pulse and after a few minutes regained consciousness. By the time we arrived at the station, he was conscious.”

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Developing Positivity In The Community

Posted on December 22, 2019 by Raphael Poch

One recent afternoon, a worker fell off a newly casted concrete ledge at a water park under construction in Modi’in, landing on a pile of wooden beams. Coworkers urgently called for help.

Yigal’s ambucycle outside of the waterpark in Modi’inUnited Hatzalah volunteer EMT Yigal Levi was at work when the alert came in and immediately dashed outside to his ambucycle. He rushed over to the water park and was the first emergency responder at the scene. Yigal found the 38-year-old victim suffering from multiple injuries including a major head wound that a fellow construction worker had put a dirty cloth on to try and stop the bleeding. 

 

Yigal immediately checked the fallen worker for arterial bleeding and began treatment. He cleaned the head wound and put a new sterile bandage on the injury as well as treating other abrasions. An additional United Hatzalah EMT arrived on the scene. The duo maintained initial immobilization and completed a field trauma assessment. When the ambulance arrived sometime later, Yigal assisted as the now-stabilized patient was placed inside for transport to the hospital.

 

“I arrived first at the scene and saw the man bleeding from his head. I bandaged his wounds and then other volunteers arrived, as well as an ambulance. Thankfully the worker was not injured too badly but at construction sites, we never take chances.” Yigal relayed after the incident.

 

“It is a great feeling to volunteer with an organization that does good work such as United Hatzalah. Everywhere I go people give way when they see my ambucycle. It is more than just a vehicle, it is a symbol of something good that the community here at large recognizes as something incredibly helpful. People often wave at me or give me a thumbs-up sign as I drive past. Knowing that the community recognizes that we are here to help gives me a terrific sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. Every time I go out with my ambucycle to help someone, more people recognize just how helpful we are and are thankful that we are around. It makes a difference in the entire community at large and helps everyone feel a little bit safer when they know that we are around.”   

 

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Netflix, Sports & Politics: a Chanukah initiative

Posted on December 22, 2019 by Raphael Poch

(By Sarah Bechor)

Let me ask you a question.

What do basketball, the courtroom, Christianity, Netflix, modeling, and politics all have in common?

Most of the year, absolutely nothing.

But this week- the week before Hanukkah- absolutely everything.

Amare Stoudemire, Alan Dershowitz, Pastor John Hagee, Lior Raz, Adar Gandelsman and David Friedman all have a common denominator: their support for Israel and Tikun Olam. These 6 famous individuals are only 6 of the 62 nominees that might receive the Korenvaes Miracle Award this year.

The what award?

Let’s back up a minute and start from the beginning.

The Korenvaes Miracle Award was created last year as a way for people in the world to vote for who they think deserves the most recognition for supporting Israel and Tikkun Olam. 62 people are listed on this website and all you need to do is vote for 8 individuals, one for each night of Chanukah, that you believe should be honored for their commitment to Tikun Olam and Israel.

Each night of Chanukah, United Hatzalah will publicly award one of the honorees with the most votes at its HQ in Jerusalem, and the winners will receive a beautiful award and a special gift from United Hatzalah.

(Oh- and did we mention that after voting you’ll automatically be entered into a raffle to win a FREE FLIGHT TO ISRAEL and 4 nights of accommodation at a hotel? So yalla, it’s worth it.)

Last year’s honorees were: Ben Shapiro, Nikki Haley, Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, Cherna Moskowitz, Alan Dershowitz, Bibi Netanyahu, Steven Spielberg, and Sheryl Sandberg.

What does all this have to do with United Hatzalah? Good question.

Here is the simple answer. United Hatzalah contains Tikkun Olam in its very own DNA. They have spread their innovation, which was born, bred and spread in Israel, all around the world to countries such as Panama, Brazil, India, the United States, Ukraine, and Argentina. Its innovative model which combines the iconic ambucycle, their highly developed “Uber-like” system that locates the medics, and the volunteers, is what people like about this organization. But what do people love about United Hatzalah? That it’s making the world a better place, in essence, it promotes Tikkun Olam. It is bringing together Arabs, Jews, Christians, secular and religious. It is creating a bridge between two hostile neighbors. It is bringing Israel one step closer to peace between rivalries. It metamorphosizes “regular” men and women into the heroes of Israel. It takes humanity and uses its strengths to help the community at large. It invites its very own citizens of Israel, the dressmaker, hairdresser and garbage man, to become lifesaving individuals who get instilled with self-worth after they start making a difference in the world. United Hatzalah is saving Israeli lives every single day but the ripple effects of this organization will stamp its impression all around the world forever.

Below is a list of this year’s nominees:

Adar Gandelsman, Israeli model and Miss Israel 2017, MC for UH Gala

Alan Dershowitz, American lawyer and academic, friend and supporter of UH

Amare Stoudemire, American-Israeli basketball player

Bar Refaeli, Israeli model

Ben Bernanke, American economist

Ben Shapiro, American commentator

Bibi Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel

Bill Maher, American comedian

Bob Dylan, American singer-songwriter

Brigitte Gabriel, American-Lebanese author

Cherna Moskowitz, Philanthropist and supporter of UH

Cheryl Saban, American author

Chuck Schumer, United States Senator

David Axelrod, Former Senior Advisor to the President

David Friedman, United States Ambassador to Israel.

Dennis Prager, American radio host

Dominique Strauss-Kahn, Former French Minister of the Economy, Finance and Industry

Dov Glickman, Israeli film actor, known as father in Netflix hit “Shtisel”

Ehud Barak, Former Prime Minister of Israel

Elena Kagan, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States

Eric Cantor, former United States Representative

Gal Gadot, Israeli actress

Haim Saban, Media proprietor, and philanthropist

Harold Grinspoon, an American real estate developer, and philanthropist

Howard Stern, American radio personality

Jay Leno, American comedian and dear friend of United Hatzalah

JK Rowling, Author of the Harry Potter Series

Joe Lieberman, Former United States Senator

Kanye West, American rapper

Lee Rosenberg, United States District Judge

Lior Raz, Director/Producer, and Actor for Netflix hit show “Fauda”

Lior Suchard, Israeli mentalist

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook

Mati Kochavi, Businessman and Philanthropist

Mayim Bialik, American actress known for the big bang theory

Michael Aloni, an Israeli actor known for Netflix hit show Shtisel

Michael Douglas, Actor

Mike Bloomberg, former mayor of New York City and philanthropist

Miriam Adelson, an American-Israeli philanthropist

Mort Fridman, AIPAC President

Natalie Portman, Israeli- American Actress

Natan Sharansky, Israeli politician, human rights activist

Neta, Eurovision winner 2018

Neta Riskin, Israeli actress known for Netflix hit show Shtisel

Nikki Haley, Former Governor of South Carolina

Nuseir Yassin, aka Nas Daily, Vlogger

Omri Casspi, Israeli basketball player

Pastor John Hagee, an American pastor

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, Member of Parliament and former chief rabbi of UK

Rahm Emanuel, Former Mayor of Chicago

Renne Willett American actress and supporter of UH

Roman Abramovich, Israeli-Russian businessman

Rona Lee Shimon, Actress and star on Netflix hit “Fauda”

Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States

Sacha Baron Cohen, Actor and Comedian

Sarah Silverman, American stand-up comedian

Scarlett Johansson, Actress

Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google

Seth Rogen, American-Canadian actor

Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and friend of UH

Steven Spielberg, American filmmaker

Sylvan Adams, Businessman

GO VOTE: HERE

Please note: You may only vote once and if you win the free ticket, you will be asked to share your picture and name for publicizing on social media.

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Canadian Philanthropist Can’t Stop Saving Lives In Israel

Posted on December 17, 2019 by Raphael Poch

Renowned International Philanthropist Miles S. Nadal and his family, who previously donated 12 ambucycles to Israel’s national volunteer EMS organization United Hatzalah, arrived in Israel at end of last month, to dedicate the new Miles S. Nadal Family Square outside the organization’s Jerusalem headquarters. The organization uses the Beautiful Garden for all of its vehicle dedications that take place in Jerusalem.   

Miles (right) with Vice PResident of United Hatzalah Dov Maisel (Left) dedicating the Miles Nadal Square in Jerusalem

At the same time, a special benefit event for United Hatzalah was held in Nadal’s private car museum in Toronto. The event was organized by Regional Development Director Andrea Plonka and featured renowned author of “Thou Shalt Innovate” Avi Jorisch as the keynote speaker at the event. 

President and Founder of United Hatzalah Eli Beer was also present at the Toronto event and shared his praise for the continued support of Nadal.  “It is a real pleasure for me to be here at Miles’ museum today with all of his friends. Miles donated 12 ambucycles to Israel including the one right here for his 60th birthday. He is a true friend of our organization and is responsible for saving many lives in Israel. Right now, there is a special dedication ceremony taking place in Israel at the United Hatzalah headquarters where Miles has generously donated a garden that sits right at the entrance to the headquarters. It is at the square that we hold all of the dedication ceremonies for our new vehicle and everyone who walks into our offices sees the generous gift that Miles gave to help save the people of Israel.” 

Mr. Nadal is a Toronto native who resides in The Bahamas. He was born in 1958 to a family of modest means and is now a renown International Entrepreneur, Industrialist, and Philanthropist. 

“My family and I feel very honored and privileged to be associated with United Hatzalah,” said Nadal at the dedication ceremony in Jerusalem. “I met Eli five years ago in New York when I went to Yizkor for my father. I didn’t know what United Hatzalah was and I didn’t know the initiative. But when he described it to me, I thought it was a gift from God. Immediately I said I want to be involved. From that day forward, my family and I have really fallen in love with everything that you do to save lives. This week we have a fundraiser in Toronto, but the consolation prize is that I am here with you in Yerushalayim. I think what you do is amazing and you should be very proud of yourself.” 

Miles Nadal planting a tree in the garden

 

Miles added that the work that United Hatzalah is doing is making an impression across the globe. “People around the world, even as far away as Canada, really respect, admire and appreciate all that you do. I together with my family look forward to continuing to invest in the expansion and growth of everything that you do.” 

Plonka spoke about Miles and his support for the organization following the event in Toronto: “Miles has been such great support for our organization, he has gone above and beyond when it comes to helping us promote our lifesaving work throughout Canada. His kindness and generosity are a big part of who he is as a person and you see it come out every time you interact with him.”

The success of the ambucycle unit is proven in the numbers, with response time averaging 90 seconds as drivers can avoid traffic, road closures, and parking limitations. A volunteer with an ambucycle receives 40 calls a month and on average saves 120 lives a year. The Miles Nadal fleet of ambucycles is saving on average 1,120 lives a year.

Nadal and his family have donated to numerous other philanthropic initiatives both in Israel, United States and in Canada which include: The Miles Nadal Jewish Community Center in Toronto Canada, MNJCC, the large-scale sustainable development and renewal project at Israel’s Ayalon Canada Park, the Miles S. Nadal Institute for Technological Entrepreneurship in Tel Aviv University, the Miles and Kelly Nadal and Family Laboratory for Research in Molecular Genetics Weizmann Institue of Science, the UJA Walk With Israel in Toronto Canada, and the Miles S. Nadal and Family Wall in Yad Vashem, and Duvdevan, the special operations unit of the IDF.

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Saving Lives on Highway 505

Posted on December 16, 2019 by Raphael Poch

Mordechai Ben-Or lives in the town of Rechelim in Samaria with his wife and three children. The town lies near the junctions of Highway 60 and Highway 505.  

The highways are both critical access roads each one connecting between towns and villages, both Jewish and Palestinian. Highway 505, in particular, is critical as it connects eastern Samaria and the Jordan Valley to the city of Ariel and later the Tel Aviv metropolitan area. With just one lane in each direction, movement on this mountain pass slows to a crawl whenever a truck tries to transverse its several ascents. 

Mordechai Ben Or’s Ambucycle at the scene of the accident on Highway 505

A few days ago, a multi-vehicle accident occurred when not one, but two cars attempted to pass a slow-moving truck. One vehicle pulling out into the left lane was hit, when the second vehicle came from behind it at high speed in an attempt to pass not only the truck but several vehicles backed up behind it. The faster-moving car ricocheted off of the slower moving one then swerved into the left guardrail before pinballing back and swerving into the truck itself. Both vehicles ended up spinning into an approaching vehicle that was coming towards them in the opposing lane.

Four miles away, at his home in the rural community of Rechelim, Mordechai was in the middle of cooking when United Hatzalah’s dispatch alerted him to the accident. Stopping only to turn off the stove, Mordechai darted out to his ambucycle, jumped on and rushed to the scene. Traffic on the winding mountain road had come to a halt in the accident’s wake, but Mordechai was able to skirt by traffic effortlessly thanks to his ambucycle. The experienced EMT quickly triaged the vehicles’ occupants, assessed the severity of the wounds they sustained. Three people suffered only minor bruising, but the driver of one of the cars was semiconscious with injuries to the head, neck, and torso. Mordechai immobilized the patient and kept him conscious as he prepared him for medical transport. Over ten minutes later, an ambulance finally arrived and rushed the patient to a regional hospital for further treatment.

Mordechai reflected on the problematic nature of many of the accidents that he sees in his area. “It always hurts me to see that many of the people I treat at car accidents are drivers or passengers who are not at fault and just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time when other drivers were driving recklessly. In this case, many of the people injured only suffered light injuries but it could have been much worse and it was all due to reckless drivers. It hurts to see these preventable injuries, that many times even result in death. 

I would like to thank the organization that gave me my ambucycle. It allows me to arrive at the scenes of accidents and other medical emergencies very quickly. When it comes to narrow one-lane roads such as Highway 505, even ambulances take a long time to arrive due to the heavy traffic that results from accidents. With the ambucycle, I am able to cover large distances quickly and save lives. It is my hope that I won’t ever have to use it, but if there is a need, then I know I can count on it to get me where I need to go quickly.”   

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United Hatzalah Of Israel Raises $7 Million in Six Days

Posted on December 15, 2019 by Raphael Poch

Last Sunday evening at the Avenue Event Hall in Airport City, United Hatzalah held their second annual Israel gala dinner, which followed shortly upon the heels of the 1st annual gala dinner held in Miami, Florida, which took place last Tuesday. The organization raised close to $3,500,000 at each event bringing the total between the two to $7,000,000.

Eli Beer on stage at the Israel Gala at Avenue in Airport City

President and Founder of United Hatzalah Eli Beer presided over both events and encouraged the crowds to help the organization in its life-saving mission. Beer told the story of how he began the organization as a young boy who saw a need for faster emergency medical care and developed it into the fastest emergency response organization in the world currently boasting active branches in five countries.

United Hatzalah’s Regional Development Director for Florida, Danielle David, who was one of the main organizers for the Miami Gala said: “The powerful bond between the volunteers and the people whose lives they save is one of the most touching human connections I have ever seen – the saved and the savior.” Her sentiment was resounded by the crowd of both galas who got to meet some of the rescuers who make up the organization and those who have benefitted from their services by being rescued.

The EMTs who saved Limor and Lior Golan pose together with the family and staff and supporters of United Hatzalah

At the Israel Gala event, a tearful family, Yaron, Limor and baby Lior Golan, were reunited with the six United Hatzalah volunteers who performed CPR on an unconscious Limor just 2 months prior. At the time, Limor was 39 weeks pregnant with Lior. During the dramatic rescue, not only did the volunteers manage to bring Limor’s pulse back, but they managed to save the baby as well. The volunteers, Aharon Avital, Tomer Tzenani, Yossi Cohen, Naftali Friedman, Adi Avivi and Lior Filshteiner, all had tears in their eyes as did the Golan family, as Yaron proudly expressed his thanks to the organization for saving the life of his wife and newborn son.

The Miami event was chaired by philanthropist Ami Pomeranc together with co-chair Nili Galbut. It honored the lifetime work of Cherna Moskowitz, Paul and Marian Kruss, Judy and Munroe Milstein, and young rescuer Joseph Levi who saved his baby brother’s life by catching him after he fell off the changing table at home. The entertainment for the evening was provided by Dudu Aharon, who volunteered his time, together with special guests Fauda actress Rona Lee Shimon and American comedians Renee Willet and Elon Gold. The event was attended by 850 people including the U.S. Ambassador to Israel and his wife, David and Tammy Friedman, Israeli Consul General to Miami Ishmael Khaldi, and David “Papi” Einhorn as well as the resident host committee.

Eli Beer together with Ambassador David Friedman at the Miami Gala last Tuesday

The Israeli event had 800 people in attendance including representatives from major corporations who came to support the lifesaving work of the organization. Among them was Mark Gerson of the Gerson Lehrman Group, Yair Hamburger who is the Chairman of Harel Insurance, Businessman Mati Kochavi, Head of Development of Ituran Gill Shratzky, Businesswoman Alona Barkat, Ruthi and Menachem Oren, Moti Ben Moshe, and Gabi and Yaron Carni.

Laura Schwartz who was the Chair of the Host Committee at the Miami Gala was awarded the Young Leadership Award at the Israeli Gala for her efforts.

Ami Pomeranc on stage at the Miami Gala

“I am always astounded by the generosity of people who see the importance of the work that United Hatzalah does,” Eli Beer told the crowd at the second of the two galas. “When I began this journey I had no idea that it would become the largest fully-volunteer free emergency medical service in Israel with branches around the globe. It is because of the men and women who drop whatever they are doing to save lives, and likewise because of the people who come out to events like this to support them, that we are able to save as many people as we do. Anyone can become a volunteer, and anyone can help save lives by supporting their work. Our goal for the next year is to increase the number of volunteers from 6,000 to more than 7,500 volunteers so that we can achieve our goal of arriving in less than 90 seconds to any medical emergency in the country. The way we do that is by expanding the growing network of lifesaving volunteers, and for that, we need the generous support of people like you.”

United Hatzalah currently numbers more than 6,000 volunteer EMTs, paramedics, and doctors who are on call 24 hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week, and 365 days-a-year. When an emergency occurs in their vicinity, they drop what they are doing and rush out to provide emergency medical treatment anywhere in Israel. The organization also has branches in Kiev, Uman, Jersey City N.J., Englewood N.J., and Panama City.

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17-Year-Old Studies Entire Bible To Raise Money For A LifeSaving Emergency Vehicle In Israel

Posted on December 15, 2019 by Raphael Poch

A few weeks ago, Ayelet Wasserman, a 17-year-old girl originally from Los Angeles who now lives with her family in Jerusalem, visited the Jerusalem headquarters of United Hatzalah of Israel to donate an emergency ambucycle. Ayelet started raising money for United Hatzalah four years ago when, after a series of terror attacks in Jerusalem, she decided to do something to help protect the people in Israel. She had always had a dream of learning the entire bible and so she committed to learning two chapters a day – every day and to review the weekly portion every Shabbat (Saturday) with the goal of finishing the entire Bible within the year. 

The dedication on the ambucycle donated by Ayelet

Thinking of how reassuring it was to see Hatzalah volunteers present at every terror attack and always ready to help, Ayelet decided to use her daily learning as a way to raise money for United Hatzalah. Ayelet wrote emails to family and friends and contributions sponsoring her daily learning poured in from around the world. The first year Ayelet raised enough to sponsor six volunteers but her hope was to raise enough for an ambucycle. Ayelet continued her daily learning and emails and, now four years later, she reached her goal.  

In a special dedication ceremony that was held at the United Hatzalah’s headquarters, President and Founder of the organization Eli Beer presented Ayelet with a miniature silver ambucycle in honor of her hard work on behalf of the organization. He thanked her for her generosity and commitment to saving lives in Israel.

“Thankfully I was able to learn every single day since I decided to do this, but it didn’t come easily at all,” said the exuberant Wasserman. “To commit to learning every single day is a struggle. Some days are easier than others. Pushing hard and working towards a goal is a special gift from God as it says in Zechariah – 3:7 – “and I will give thee places to walk among those who stand by.” God is saying that to those who make an effort He will give them the opportunity to improve and succeed. If a person doesn’t push towards progress, then they will automatically regress. Please God, lives will be saved with this ambucycle, but I can say that my whole life has changed by undertaking this project.”

 

Wasserman explained why she undertook the challenge to raise the money for the ambucycle. “As an Orthodox Jew, I believe that the proper response to terror is learning (Torah). Through learning, we find God’s message as to why everything is the way it is. I hope to continue learning and to continue contributing to United Hatzalah. Hopefully soon, I’ll have another ambucycle.”

 

Beer thanked Ayelet and her family for their efforts on his organization’s behalf and said: “This was truly a momentous event. It’s one thing to donate an ambucycle to enable us to save more lives in Israel; it’s another to combine long-term intensive Torah learning and crowdfunding to accomplish that goal. Thank you Ayelet and your whole family for choosing United Hatzalah; it was so amazing to dedicate this vehicle with you. You have earned every mechanical part, every mile, every life saved.”  

 

To support the work of United Hatzalah just like Ayelet please click here:

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Leaving My Kids To Save Another — Sacrificing My Time To Save A Life

Posted on December 12, 2019 by Raphael Poch

One evening, a babysitter was looking after some children at their home in Bnei Brak. One little boy, who was severely allergic to milk products, was jealous of his siblings happily munching on pizza. The two-year-old child grabbed a piece of pizza from his brother before he could be stopped. The effect was instantaneous and his entire body immediately broke out in hives, swelling to drastic proportions. The alarmed babysitter called emergency dispatch which alerted the nearest United Hatzalah emergency medical service volunteers to the dire emergency.

Yaakov Borer on his ambucycle

United Hatzalah volunteer EMT Yaakov Borer was bathing his children when he received the alert. Leaving his kids with his wife, Yaakov dashed out of his house, jumped on his ambucycle and tore over to the address. Arriving in under 90 seconds, Yaakov sprinted into the home. He found the child swiftly losing consciousness from oxygen deprivation due to the almost complete constriction of his airway. He was moments away from stopping to breathe. Fortunately, this active medic carries an EpiPen in his United Hatzalah medic bag. Hands moving with lightning speed, Yaakov injected the lifesaving epinephrine into the child’s thigh. He then grabbed his oxygen tank and ambu-mask, administering assisted ventilation to the barely conscious child. Yaakov kept up the artificial respiration for almost ten minutes until the little boy’s condition stabilized. His breathing normalized and he regained consciousness.

Yaakov calmed the distraught babysitter and crying children as he monitored the young patient. Fifteen minutes later, an intensive care ambulance arrived to facilitate medical transport. Yaakov left the home full of exhilaration, excitement, and emotion. It was sobering to realize that the child had been minutes away from death, and Yaakov was filled with gratitude that he had the tools and ability to save his life. Returning to his freshly-bathed children, Yaakov kissed each one good-night, feeling the vibrancy of their lives and knowing that there was another child alive at that moment because of him.

To support the work of volunteers like Yaakov click here: 

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A Tractor-Trailer Crash and The Man Who Saved The Day

Posted on December 9, 2019 by Raphael Poch

Bezalel Sebag lives with his family in Rehovot and works for Elbit Systems. Bezalel is a very devoted volunteer EMT with United Hatzalah and is always ready to respond to any medical emergency at a moment’s notice.

Betzalel (Middle) on an ambulance shift with other United Hatzalah volunteersRecently one Tuesday morning, a speeding tractor-trailer collided with a car just outside of Rehovot. Witnesses urgently called for help. Bezalel, who was at work when the call came in, quickly dashed outside and raced to the scene.

Despite the truck being significantly larger, the impact was so powerful that the trailer section had partially overturned. The smaller vehicle fared much worse and was almost completely demolished. Bezalel was faced with a grisly sight. The car driver, a 40-year-old male, sustained a horrific head wound and his left leg was crushed under the engine and was bleeding profusely. Without immediate treatment, the driver would have surely died.

Bezalel grabbed his medical kit, reached through the mangled car and began treatment. He quickly applied a tourniquet to the victim’s leg to stop the heavy bleeding and then bandaged the head wound. Other United Hatzalah volunteer EMTs arrived and they assisted Bezalel in applying a neck brace, starting an IV and administering high flow oxygen.

 It took 40 minutes for the fire department to extricate the trapped driver, and during those minutes that felt like an eternity, Bezalel and his colleagues used every tool at their disposal to keep the victim alive. After the firefighters successfully extricated the driver, Betzalel and his fellow EMS personnel carefully and quickly transferred the victim to a waiting ambulance to be rushed to the nearest trauma center.

 This accident could have claimed a man’s life. Bezalel’s prompt and expert treatment made all the difference.

 

To support the work of volunteers like Bezalel, please click here:

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