Hundreds of patients in Pat will remain without mental assistance. Until then, they are in health danger

A recent cosmetic overhaul at City Hall has left the clinic with mold and mildew, affecting both employee and patient health. Walla tracking! NEWS reveals that a remodel is currently planned, but no room for the treatments is available. Ministry of Health: "The clinic is given an alternative place."

Cosmetic overhaul only. Mental Health Clinic in Petah Tikva after repairing rain damage

Mental Health Clinic in Petah Tikva after Repair of Rain Damage (Photo: Untitled, Untitled)

Hundreds of patients in the mental health clinic in Petah Tikva will soon be left without mental help, and in the meantime, they will have to be treated under severe sanitation conditions, as workers at the site complained. The mental health clinic on Ahad Ha'am Street in the city is expected to undergo a major overhaul in the coming weeks following the situation in which the clinic deteriorated after the recent storm, during which the building ceiling collapsed, as revealed in Walla! NEWS.

Following the incident, the municipality that owns the building renovated the building - but it was only cosmetic treatment, as the collapsed tiles were replaced, and the mold and mildew from the accumulated wetness actually continued to worsen. Employees are now performing their public duties in difficult conditions, complaining that their health is getting worse, thanks to a lack of communication between the Ministry of Health and the municipality, which refuses to take responsibility for the situation.

At the beginning of the renovation, which is expected to last for at least six months, there will be no clinic treatments in Ahad Ha'am - and no alternative place has been offered for it. "We do not find an alternative structure, which means there are dozens of patients a day who will have nowhere else to go," said a veteran psychologist from the clinic, who chose to be interviewed anonymously. "We are told to go to the children's clinic on Spiegel Street, and we need to scramble rooms there," she said. "If there are four patients and there is room for an hour, how do you choose whom to treat? Who will deteriorate most in a period of no treatment? It makes no sense, is unprofessional and does not meet any standard. Whatever, for patients, it is an injury to itself to move between buildings and rooms."

More in Walla! NEWS

"Serious injury to patients." Mental Health Clinic in Petah Tikva after the impromptu renovation

Mental Health Clinic in Petah Tikva after Repair of Rain Damage (Photo: Untitled, Untitled)

The clinic also resented the renovation the municipality was doing following the flooding, which left bare power cables behind. Now that the municipality has tried to intervene in the situation in order to improve the state of the structure, the Ministry of Health has specifically banned cooperation between the employees and the authority. "An employee of the Regional Legislature invited a call with the municipality about the solutions, but the Ministry of Health did not allow her to go," the employee said. "You can't call what they've done up to now a refurbishment. You can call it a windshield. There were dangers of electrocution and that fixed it. All the disgust there was not arranged."

"One of our psychologists, a veteran expert, is sitting in a room that has an exit sign that hangs in the air and is about to crash. When someone comes to check it it is said to be normal. It is scary to sit in that room," the clinic worker added. In addition, she says there is a pungent smell of moisture and mildew. "This is a clinic where mushrooms are growing from the hardwood floor. The neglect of the place is many years, the infrastructure there is in such poor condition that the last case fell on fertile ground." She added that "employees report that they go out with headaches and nausea. On the other hand, we are not working on data analytics, it's people. The cost of canceling appointments is very high. It's Sophie's choice - whether the therapists choose for themselves or the patients."

Failure in the clinic: The ceiling of the building collapsed because of the rain, and hundreds remained untreated

"Employees are reporting that they are going out with headaches and nausea." Mental Health Clinic in Petah Tikva, today

Mental Health Clinic in Petah Tikva after Repair of Rain Damage (Photo: Untitled, Untitled)

She said that "the clinic is such a nasty-looking place that if psychologists say it's too much, it's really too much." She said, "The story of the renovation is complicated. It is unclear whether the renovation will fit the needs of the clinic. They said they might unite rooms, there is already a shortage of rooms." In addition, the clinic worker said, "It is unclear if there will be a discussion with us about the outline of the renovation, of our needs at the clinic. Dozens of people are working there and there is a kitchen-size kitchenette. It does not appear to be a conversation with us."

According to the chair of the Public Psychology Forum, psychologist Jordan Mendelssohn, the health ministry is not allowed to handle - but the ministry is daring employees to dare to complain, and even ask them to thank him for the little actions he is taking - as the place's rent is expected to be completed in two years. " Finish remodeling, allow to return to the rooms. There is mold, mildew, stench. "They come out with headaches," Mendelsohn said. "They contacted the workers' committee, sent a letter to the Ministry of Health, and what they answered was that they had to say they were renovating it because it was a municipality contract that the contract was over two years."

"This week the workers showed the plans for the renovation. It will take six months and there is no alternative structure," she continued. "In addition, he is canceling a five-room clinic. The Egged administration on behalf of the Ministry of Health said there would be no alternative." "As a psychologist, I'm not interested in the ping-pong between the municipality and the health ministry. It's a mental health clinic, it has meaning. It has to be seen in a certain way. The municipality and the office don't seem to care that much."

"Disrespect for Petah Tikva residents"

The professional organizations, which face such difficulties and deep mental health issues with the Ministry of Health, find it difficult to remain indifferent to the exceptional situation of the clinic in Petah Tikva. "The Ministry of Health's conduct on the mental health clinic in the city distills the state's disregard for public psychology services," said the Public Psychology Organizations Forum. "It is unlikely and unreasonable that the physical condition of the clinic, which also provides psychologically sound treatments and diagnoses, with workload and shameful employment conditions, does not interest the office, which this clinic and others are responsible for."

"Even now, a ceiling has collapsed and a miracle has escaped disaster, only a basic renovation has been done," the forum continued. "We are in 2020. The workers on the site may not be faced with mold and mildew, in the absence of basic safety conditions for their health. Disrespect to Petah Tikva residents who need clinic services and will have to suffer for another six months of additional - unjustified renovation," the public psychology forum added.

"Now it also turns out that in the coming six months of the renovation, it is not possible to provide public psychologic services to the residents of Petah Tikva. Moreover, as a result of the renovation, the clinic, which also does not meet the needs, will be reduced and 5 treatment rooms will be demolished." They wondered "How did we get to where there are no preparations on behalf of the Ministry? How is it that essential services, which are so stretched to the limit, are reduced further? Is it not time for the Ministry of Health to take responsibility for the public psychologically responsible services?"

"A series of repairs." Mental Health Clinic in Petah Tikva, today

Mental Health Clinic in Petah Tikva after Repair of Rain Damage (Photo: Untitled, Untitled)

The chairman of the Israel Psychiatric Association, Dr. Zvi Fishel, joined the demands. "We are again witnessing the push of the psychiatric system to the margins of the Health Ministry agenda," he said. "The Director General of the Ministry of Health must wake up and realize that the management of the health system in Israel cannot be based solely on words. Our patients and we have longed for budgets for a long time, "added the chairman of the Psychiatric Association in Israel. "We require the Ministry of Health to immediately allocate the funds promised to psychiatric buildings for new construction and renovation of buildings, which in many cases still exist in the state."

The Petah Tikva Municipality spokesman said: "Following the recent storm damage, the authority has carried out a series of repairs in the clinic, including roof sealing and renovation of the ceiling tiles. With the drying of the wetlands, the authority will carry out plaster and dyeing work in the coming days." The municipality emphasized that "this is a jointly owned building by the authority and the Ministry of Health, and in preparation for the planned renovation there is a meeting between the parties to discuss, among other things, the maintenance." In addition, the municipality claimed that "the authority has given the clinic an alternative location which will allow the clinic to continue until the complete renovation is completed."

The Ministry of Health said: "The office has undergone an initial refurbishment in the clinic that, according to experts, allows it to return to work with full safety. Indeed, most employees have returned to work." The Ministry of Health added: "At the same time, a clinic is expected to begin in-depth refurbishment within a month to bring it to the highest standards. We are preparing to find an alternative place for the clinic at the time of the renovation and to provide a professional and appropriate response for all patients."