May 17, 2002/Sivan 6, 5762, Vol. 54, No.35
Nursing Israel
TERRY JEAN RATNER
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 Deena Schwartz, originally from New Jersey, is now a nurse in Israel. Photo courtesy of Deena Schwartz |
Schwartz and her family live in Israel, among the rubble and stench of death that surround them. They made their aliyah in June 2000, two months before the current intifada. Schwartz felt a desire to combine her love of nursing with her loyalty for her brothers and sisters living in Israel. "These are my people and I've felt a camaraderie with them since childhood," she says.
She learned Hebrew in preschool and first visited Israel with her parents when she was 13 years old. That trip enhanced her love for the people and country that would one day become her home.
Nursing came naturally to Schwartz and after graduating from Fairleigh Dickinson University, in Rutherford, N.J., she worked in the neonatal intensive care unit and in pediatric triage.
"Becoming a nurse fulfilled a need to help others," she says, "but the memories of Israel stayed with me, and I knew my nursing skills were needed elsewhere."
A move that fit
Schwartz has always been fascinated with this tiny state, the size of New Jersey, where you can drive the whole country in one day. "You travel from the northern green lush lands to the central metropolitan and agricultural areas, to the south sandy desert. Every terrain you could imagine is combined into this small country."
She lives in Hashmonaim, one of the settlements close to mainland Israel, and equal distance from Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
Before Schwartz could practice nursing in Israel, she had to submit her credentials to the Ministry of Health and studied several months before taking her nursing boards in Hebrew.
The salaries in Israel are about half of the United States rate of pay, but "I practice nursing in Israel because I want to support my people, and the money is secondary," Schwartz says.
She works at Kupat Cholim, a family clinic close to her home. Ninety percent of the population she works with is ultra Orthodox and yeshiva students.
"They are a young population, beginning their marriages and starting a family," Schwartz, who is also Orthodox, notes. "The people I care for are very compliant about their care."
Nursing in Israel
The shortage of nurses isn't limited to the United States - Israel also has its problems.
"Especially now during the intifada with Palestine, people are leaving, and immigration has come to a standstill," says Schwartz. "It's a difficult task to treat victims of suicide bombers, the children, elders and all the innocent bystanders." She emphasizes how the nursing shortage isn't limited to hospitals. "At Kupat Cholim, it took us nine months to fill a nursing position. Nurses must be able to multi-task and that's not always easy."
On the yeshuv, the settlement, a plan is in place. A large sealed room in the clinic, piled high with necessary medical supplies and equipment, is ready for emergencies. The concrete room, with special doors and windows, protects them from chemical or biological warfare.
Schwartz talks about the hospitals in Israel: "The care is the same whether the patient is a Palestinian, Jew or Arab. Medicine seems to be the neutral zone in Israel. Jewish and Arab doctors work together regardless of their religion."
The resources for Israeli hospitals are up to date, plentiful and modern. According to Schwartz, "The cleanliness, sterility, and safety measures are priorities that are always met."
Nurses under fire
The threat of bombs shadows Schwartz daily as she works in the clinic. Nurses and patients are affected by the constant barrage of attacks and loss of life on both sides in the region.
| Portrait of a Palestinian hospital |
Israel has an emotional hotline for support and they've recently doubled their volunteers. "We all use our skills here to help each other," Schwartz says. "We're responsible for our fellow Jews."
The fear factor
Schwartz can look out her bedroom window and see the nearby Palestinian villages. She says the ones close to her are silent except for their prayer services five times a day.
"Although it's quieter and the attacks have let up, we know it's just a matter of time," she says.
"I bounce back and forth between the philosophy of 'this is our land and the Palestinians can't stop me from living my life' to 'I really have to be careful and protect my family,' " she says. She no longer goes anywhere without glancing around and assessing who's occupying space around her.
A state of readiness
Members of the medical staff in Hashmonaim are organizing themselves against a possible terrorist attack. They have banded together and are in a state of readiness.
"We have within our yeshuv an emergency committee, consisting of doctors, nurses and social workers," Schwartz says. "This team has coordinated triage and mass care to take place within minutes of an assault."
Schwartz says "The Palestinians stole many Israeli ambulances this year, and warnings went out to soldiers that these vehicles could be used to bring in suicide bombers."
She adds that "there have been numerous explosives and terrorists' belts found at the different check points."
She says the detention of ambulances at checkpoints is a problem the Palestinians have brought on themselves. "Naturally, we have to check the vehicle and make sure bombs won't go off and kill innocent people."
Israel has two types of ambulances, regular and intensive care vehicles. When a terrorist attack occurs, Israel immediately sends an intensive care vehicle.
The first step after a terrorist attack is for the Army to secure the area. "(Often), the first bomb goes off and a second one is detonated to kill the rescue workers," explains Schwartz.
Before rescue workers can assist the injured, the area must be cleared and declared safe for the medical workers. This necessary procedure saves hundreds of lives.
Schwartz talks about the first year (2000) of the intifada and how the facts weren't reported.
"We knew it was a war from the beginning, and people all over called it Israeli aggression. We're alone on an island. This isn't a war against Israel, it's a war against Jews and humanity."
Terry Ratner is a free-lance writer and registered nurse at Good Samaritan Hospital in Phoenix.