Dear Colleagues,
One needs unusual optimism, patience and vision to develop new medical services. But are these not qualities that a physician needs and on which he or she was taught in medical school: faith, determination and patience?
The difficult economic situation in Israel directly affects the health system. The basket of health services has not been significantly expanded, and the public's out-of-pocket share of health expenditures now constitutes 33% of national health spending at a time when many people's pockets are empty; many people pay with their health because they have run out of money. The inequality in the ability to purchase health services has increased rather than shrunk.
It's easy in such a situation to become stagnated and choose to act as one does in a mass catastrophe according to the principles of triage – of treating those who most need it. We regret that the principles appropriate for a short-term extreme situation are not suited to ongoing running of the health system with an emphasis on disease prevention and treating patients from conception to old age. Comprehensive treatment such as this requires long-term planning, and multiple-year planning needs long-term budgeting.
Unfortunately, these "luxuries" are not easily available, thus the health system often reacts rather than creating enough initiatives. We at Hadassah understand that standing in place to preserve what exists means moving backwards. It's very hard to develop an advanced system when it does not have aims and targets. Our aim is to continue and lead in the provision of advanced medical care, in teaching and research, and this is the result of our being a leading medical institution.
Recent independent surveys of patients have in fact placed us as a leading medical institution. This bulletin issue illustrates Hadassah's application of the latest know-how to serve the patient. It is my hope that you and your patients will find it of interest.
Sincerely,
Prof. Shmuel Shapira,
Deputy Director-General, the Hadassah Medical Organization
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