Health Ministry Director General Prof. Nachman Ash on Tuesday evening expressed shock at the attack on a doctor at the Clalit Health Fund in Beer Yaakov.
"This reality cannot continue. The violence against medical staff has become a state scourge that we must not accept," Prof. Ash said.
"We will do everything possible to protect the medical staff, we cannot continue to be silent and must raise a hand against them. I call on the State Attorney's Office and the judiciary to act to the full extent of the law," he said.
Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz added: "Violence against medical staff will not go away quietly. This struggle is a struggle of every person in Israel. We will establish more policing positions, increase enforcement and continue to insist on stricter punishment."
A female doctor was assaulted by a patient wielding a metal rod. The doctor was moderately injured and evacuated to Assaf Harofeh Hospital. Police were called to the scene and arrested the patient, who did not explain why he assaulted the doctor.
Clalit Health Services said, "A patient who was in the doctor's room refused to leave the room and struck the doctor's head with a metal object. The clinic staff was called to help upon hearing the the shouting and the activation of the distress button. The police and security staff were called immediately. The doctor was evacuated to a hospital and the attacker was arrested by the police."
The Clalit management released a statement saying: "We are shocked by a case of extremely severe violence against a dedicated doctor. The teams provide dedicated care and the cycle of violence must stop immediately. We will not accept a reality where medical teams are exposed to severe violence every day. We demand that all relevant authorities join hands, act resolutely and without compromise to eradicate this phenomenon. The state must immediately allocate resources for the purpose of stengthening security and adding security personnel."