Despite representing a significant population within Israel’s northern region, the Druze community had described many challenges when it came to the urgent medical needs of their local villages. In response, the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ) has made addressing this deficiency a priority and this week dedicated a fourth Magen David Adom (MDA) Mobile Intensive Care Unit (MICU) specifically allocated to service the needs of the Druze community.
This latest MICU was dedicated in the village of Mesada and will complement three other units already based out of Julis, Beit Je’an and Dalit Al Carmel, heavily populated by members of the Druze community.
All of the units are designed to cover adjacent villages and roadways and these vehicles are viewed as a critical investment in enhancing the public healthcare needs of Carmel, Galilee, and Golan Heights regions. The new units will significantly reduce MDA response times to the villages, which is certain to translate to life-saving care. Since the first MICU was donated through IFCJ support in 2021, MDA reports having responded to 2,460 cases, including many of which required the intensive care capabilities provided by these specialized units. Among them were 1,996 cardiac cases, 150 vehicular accidents, and 16 births alongside other emergencies where every minute counts.
Among the beneficiaries of the new units was 63-year-old Issam Shufu from Majdal Shams who recalled experiencing a heart attack several weeks ago: "The local MDA teams responded quickly and were able to use a defibrillator to stabilize my condition before I was transported by MDA helicopter to the hospital. I thank the MDA teams from the bottom of my heart for saving my life. I am told that I was on the verge of death and only because they were able to get there quickly am I here alive and telling my story."
Safwan Marich, Director of the Safety and Emergency Response Division of IFCJ, said, "This fourth unit represents the culmination of a historic process together with MDA that will directly save lives as has already been proven with the first three units. It is a source of great pride in how IFCJ is working actively to reduce the social gaps facing the communities living in Israel’s periphery and to show that all Israelis deserve these types of services. We are deeply thankful to the many supporters around the world who have made this project possible."
Israeli Friends of MDA CEO Orly Ariel said: "We have today completed the delivery of the MICUs from Dalyat El Carmel in the Carmel, to Mas'ade in the northern Golan Heights – an historic move by the IFCJ in partnership with MDA, in order to significantly improve the pre-hospital medical response in the Druze communities. Through this partnership, the partnership has approved the training of a further 100 EMTs from the Druze communities, in order to increase the number of staff in the stations. Magen David Adom now has the ability to provide advanced care through the funding and operation of the MICUs – and so save lives."
MDA Yarden Region Manager Oren Avitan said: "I thank the IFCJ for this important cooperation for the benefit of the local residents. The new MICU will assist MDA teams in the Yarden Region to provide rapid, advanced care, and the most professional medical treatment in these outlying communities."
MDA Deputy Director of Operations Gil Moshkowitz added: "We are pleased today to complete the provision of the MDA MICUs in the Druze communities, with the assistance of the IFCJ and the Israeli Friends of MDA. This upgrade of MDA's medical service in the periphery will reduce the response times, and improve the flow of the chain of survival that begins with treatment, through to the arrival of a helicopter if required, and the arrival of the patient at hospital."
MDA Director General Eli Bin noted: "The years-long cooperation with the IFCJ helps build Magen David Adom's resilience, to the benefit of the security and health of the residents of the State of Israel, by assisting with the placement of MICUs across the north of Israel, and the installation of hundreds of public-access defibrillators. The MICU that we have dedicated today joins the others already in operation in the area, and helps reduce MDA's response times, and allows our paramedics to provide a wider range of treatments for complex medical conditions, all to benefit the citizens in the State of Israel."
