In order to reduce the harm to citizens' health, the internal hospitalization and intensive care systems must be strengthened. • Otherwise, thousands will begin and die from postponing treatments.
The health system of the State of Israel has for years been a global example of excellence.
Israeli citizens enjoy the longest life expectancy in the world, excellent doctors and modern treatments, all at a very low cost compared to other advanced countries.
Archive photo: GPO
Notwithstanding the above, the public health system has been suffering for years from neglect and budget cuts that impair its ability to provide optimal care.
For years the impact of budget cuts, manpower shortages and hospital bed shortages could have been mitigated through judicious use of existing resources.
During the corona plague, the concept of optimal treatment of minimal resources is collapsing before our eyes.
Lack of inpatient beds and intensive care and skilled manpower, mainly doctors, nurses and nurses in inpatient and intensive care, leads for the second time in six months to impose a total closure on the State of Israel at the cost of huge damage to the mental health of Israeli citizens and the economy.
The training of internal physicians capable of qualitatively treating complex patients takes many years, and the treatment of these patients cannot be assigned to physicians with other expertise.
Although we do not foresee the sight of patients who cannot be breathed or thousands of dead, and we are not expected to predict a complete collapse of the country's hospital system, it is likely that many thousands will begin and die due to delayed necessary treatments, and delayed diagnosis and urgent treatment.
a point of light
In order to minimize the harm to the health of Israeli citizens, the internal hospitalization system and the intensive care system of the State of Israel must be strengthened immediately and significantly.
The solution to the shortage of manpower and hospital beds in the inpatient wards must be carried out in two stages: in the first stage, the workload in the inpatient wards and the intensive care unit must be eased immediately.
Internal wards can be reinforced with administrative staff, physician assistants, blood transfusers, and paramedics, who will significantly reduce the burden placed on medical staff, and enable the most patients to be treated in each ward.
It is possible to recruit quality personnel as part of the reserve and students, and prepare them to perform these tasks right now in order to prepare for the difficult winter ahead.
In the second stage, it is necessary to understand that internal medicine and intensive care are the foundations on which the treatment of complex patients is built.
These professions are neglected and rewarded in a low way compared to other medical professions and are therefore not attractive to young doctors.
As the population ages, an increasing burden is expected on the internal hospitalization systems.
The reinforcement of the internal departments should be carried out by providing adequate remuneration to the doctors and nurses who choose this hard work.
Without the recruitment of quality personnel and the addition of hospital beds to the boarding school, we will not be able to avoid the embarrassing sights of elderly people hospitalized in the corridor and certainly not improve the quality of care.
But there are bright spots in the fight against the plague.
The health system manages to use limited resources in a coordinated manner to prevent a shortage of hospital beds in areas where the epidemic is raging.
Sheba Medical Center, the largest hospital in the country, mobilized to lead the fight and was organized to open hospital wards for children with corona, patients in need of dialysis and corona patients suffering from psychiatric illnesses.
These complex patients require a combination of knowledge in infectious diseases to treat corona and the ability to balance their underlying disease with additional expertise, which is not always available in all regions of the country.
Wise use of global centers of excellence such as Sheba Medical Center, can help the national fight against the epidemic.
Supporting the departments at the forefront will allow the public health system the time needed to eradicate the infection in the community.
Only then will it be possible to defeat the corona and return to a routine lifestyle.
