8 Days of olim shining their light on Israel: Dvora Corn

Corn's organization Life's Door has helped give medical treatment to over 10,000 people in Israel.

By NEFESH B NEFESH
Updated: DECEMBER 18, 2017 12:37
Dvora Corn, founder of Life's Door (photo credit: Courtesy)
Dvora Corn, founder of Life's Door
(photo credit: Courtesy)
When Dvora Corn, a family therapist, and her husband Dr. Benjamin W. Corn, an internationally recognized radiation oncologist, made Aliyah from the US in 1994, they quickly realized that they could bring the concept of spiritual care to Israeli society. They co-founded Life’s Door, an organization that has led the movement of integrating spirituality into healthcare as a platform to offer hope and meaning for people facing serious disease and life’s end.
Life"s Door (YouTube/TishkofetLD)
Confronting what it describes as an “acute void in the global medical establishment,” Life’s Door has served more than 10,000 people in Israel, incorporating quality of life as a crucial tool in medical treatment. The organization says it “raises awareness of the importance of professional self-care, end-of-life conversations and mind-body tools to bring about hope, meaning and resilience for patients, families and healthcare professionals.”
Life’s Door programs are implemented on five levels: public, professional, regulatory, research, and networking. The “Caring Communities” initiative, for instance, builds bridges between Israel and the Diaspora by enabling healthcare professionals to share best practices.
Before moving to Israel, Dvora had established one of the largest private rehabilitation practices in the Philadelphia-South New Jersey area. She currently practices as a family therapist in Jerusalem, specializing in issues of loss and illness from the existential and systems perspectives. Dvora has lectured and provided workshops to patients, families, and professionals throughout Israel and the US.
Over the 8 days of Hannukah, the Jerusalem Post and Nefesh B’Nefesh will bring you 8 extraordinary Olim from North America and the UK that have shined their respective light on Israel and the Jewish people. Nefesh B’Nefesh, the main facilitator of Aliyah from these areas, has brought over 50,000 Olim to Israel since the organizations’ founding 10 years ago. Its annual Sylvan Adams Nefesh B’Nefesh Bonei Zion Prize honors these Olim each year. To nominate exceptional Anglo Olim making a difference in Israel, please visit: http://www.nbn.org.il/bonei-zion/.