During the Jerusalem Post Miami Conference, Adv. Yael Yativ, CEO of the Friends Associations of Assuta Ashdod University Hospital, shared how Israel’s newest public hospital became a critical frontline facility during from the very onset of October 7th. Situated just 16 miles from Gaza, Assuta Ashdod treated hundreds of civilians and soldiers injured in the war’s initial and most severe phases. “By January 2024, 60% of the most severely wounded IDF soldiers that were evacuated by helicopter from the battlefields were saved at Assuta, and lifesaving continues until today,” Yativ stated. “That is a significant figure.” Jerusalem Post diplomat correspondent Amichai Stein, who spoke with Yativ on stage, highlighted the hospital’s extraordinary “96% survival rate”.
According to Yativ, Assuta Ashdod was never intended to be a primary destination for emergency helicopter evacuations. “Not even one helicopter was supposed to land at our hospital,” she said. “They were all meant to fly to central Israel.” But battlefield realities changed those plans. “If the IDF doctor on board decided the soldier would not survive the extra six minutes to the center of Israel, they landed with us,” she explained. “In medicine, time is life.” Yativ emphasized that the hospital’s performance was not accidental. “It wasn’t a miracle. We were prepared,” she said. Established only eight years ago, Assuta Ashdod is the first public hospital built in Israel in more than five decades. “We are the only public hospital established within the high-tech startup nation era,” she noted. “Innovation is taught to every single employee – not as a slogan, but as a way of life.”
This hospital culture has drawn top medical talent from all over the country. “The finest physicians in Israel left lucrative positions in Israel’s center to move south,” Yativ said. “They recognized the importance of equalizing Israel’s public medical healthcare services for the benefit of Israel’s south and a once in a lifetime opportunity of creating the most innovative hospital in Israel.” In only seven years, she noted, the hospital has made progress equivalent to ‘closing 30 years of innovation gaps.’ Assuta Ashdod has also gained the trust of nearby communities. “Ninety-three percent of widowed IDF mothers-to-be choose to give birth at our hospital,” Yativ added, and emphasized the urgent need for support as the demand is way beyond the supply. Assuta Ashdod answered this call expanding with a new medical tower like none other in Israel, currently under construction. She also answered the theme of rehabilitation that was heavily discussed in previous panels at the conference by stating that there is a dire lack of rehabilitation services in southern Israel. “Rehabilitation is a process. There’s no quick fix.” With over 53% of wounded soldiers residing in the Hashfela region and Southern Israel, she said, “It must be accessible locally.” “We operate in Israel’s most challenging neighborhood,” Yativ concluded.
The article was written in collaboration with Assuta Ashdod Public University Hospital.