Ten Kavod
The Ten Kavod Program was designed to provide regular medical checkups to elderly individuals living alone, focusing especially on Holocaust survivors.
Mission Statement
The Ten Kavod program, in English “Showing Respect”, was established in 2013 with the aim “to prevent the deterioration of medical health among the senior population,” regardless of religious affiliation, race or gender. The project works to prevent the all-too common instances United Hatzalah faces when encountering impoverished senior citizens who are unable to contend with the routine reality, who are suffering declining health conditions and even, at times, when reaching these citizens when it is already too late.
The department recruits volunteers from the community, trains them as first responders (they undergo the full first responders’ training), and coordinates between the volunteer and the specific senior citizen.
ABOUT US
Filling a void
The Ten Kavod project is currently offered in 33 cities around the country – including Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Elad, Herzliya, and Ashkelon – where over 720 holocaust survivors and other elderly participants benefit from services by 700 trained volunteers, including weekly home visits, advice on social and financial benefits, medical checkups and access to our call-center staff.
Read more
The services provided by Ten Kavod are completely free to aid the elderly who are struggling financially. There are 190,000 holocaust survivors in Israel today, including 48,000 living below the poverty line, and 38,500 who report having to choose between food, medication, and other necessities.
The volunteer visits his or her assigned senior citizen in his home and monitors his health and vitals in order to provide preventative care. Furthermore, the volunteer assists the senior citizen in contending with the digital world and making appointments at the Health Fund (Kupat Cholim). The volunteer also serves as a companion who engages the senior citizen and helps alleviate his loneliness, thereby, the volunteer acts as an additional field of warmth and protection for the senior citizen.
LEARN MORE
Acts of kindness start at home
United Hatzalah’s Ten Kavod (Care with Dignity) program is unique in its volunteer-based approach to providing a cost-free dependable holistic medical and social solution for Holocaust survivors and other elderly in Israel living alone in the community. Through free weekly wellness visits to the elderly by trained volunteers, the Ten Kavod program secures the health of countless vulnerable Israelis.
Read more
United Hatzalah established the Ten Kavod program in 2012 in response to the many incidents of elder neglect reported by our volunteer medics. The program’s mission is to provide a safety net for Israel’s at-risk Holocaust survivors and elderly population living alone in the community. Our Ten Kavod volunteers undergo a 44-hour training course so that they can identify any medical issues requiring attention as well as carry out weekly vital signs checks.
Weekly home visits include vital signs checks (temperature, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, etc.), which help identify changes in the patient’s medical condition and prevent deterioration and repeated hospital stays. Our emphasis is on preventive care – such as early diagnosis of medical issues – to avoid prolonged and costly hospital stays and deterioration of current or new health conditions. We train our volunteers to recognize symptoms of dementia, injury, and poor nutrition.
Additional Ten Kavod Aid
United Hatzalah’s Ten Kavod program offers the following special programs:
Distribution of warm, winter blankets to elderly individuals
Delivery of 350 Passover holiday kits to the elderly
Delivery of 350 Chanukah holiday kits to Ten Kavod participants
These gifts helped ensure the safety and wellbeing of hundreds of Ten Kavod participants, bringing joy and warmth during the holiday festivities.
