Hadassah Medical Organization opened Hadassah–Helmsley Netivot, a new medical center intended to provide advanced diagnosis, treatment, and ongoing care close to home for residents of the western Negev, according to a Hadassah statement on Thursday.
The facility was established together with Hadassah, The Women’s Zionist Organization of America, and in partnership with The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust, as part of efforts to narrow longstanding healthcare gaps between the center of the country and the periphery, amid wider national discussion about expanding imaging capacity in outlying regions.
Hadassah said the initiative was based on a framework agreement signed before the outbreak of the Swords of Iron war, under which Hadassah specialist teams will travel south to staff the new center.
Hadassah Director General Prof. Yoram Weiss said, “The establishment of a medical center in the city of Netivot is a defining national milestone and a recognition of the full right of southern residents to receive advanced, high-quality medical services.”
Senior officials attend opening ceremony
The event was held in the presence of Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, Health Minister Haim Katz, Coalition Chair MK Ofir Katz, Environmental Protection Minister Idit Silman, the minister of innovation, science and technology, members of Knesset and representatives of Israel’s health funds (HMOs).
Netivot Mayor Yehiel Zohar said the center is “a transformative milestone” for the city and the western Negev, adding that “the new medical center brings a message of equality, quality of life, and medical security for our families.”
Hadassah said the center will provide specialist outpatient clinics and an advanced imaging center, with services including MRI, CT, ultrasound, X-ray and fluoroscopy. It will also offer care in fields such as ophthalmology, orthopedics, neurology, gastroenterology, women’s health and oral and maxillofacial surgery.
Sandor Frankel, a trustee of the Helmsley Charitable Trust, said, “Whether you live in the north or south of Israel should not limit your ability to access the same quality of healthcare as in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv,” adding that Helmsley was “pleased to play a role” in supporting the Netivot center.
Carol Ann Schwartz, president of Hadassah, The Women’s Zionist Organization of America, said the launch was “a moment of renewal, hope” and part of a long-term commitment to “high-quality, advanced, and equitable healthcare for every citizen, everywhere in Israel.”