President Herzog, Prime Minister Lapid, Health Minister Horowitz, and Tel Aviv Mayor Huldai join philanthropist Sylvan Adams in opening new Emergency Hospital at Ichilov.
Tel Aviv, Israel, 28 July, 2022 – With the participation of President Herzog and Prime Minister Lapid, as well as Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz, Tel Aviv’s Ichilov Hospital today (Thursday), inaugurated the new Sylvan Adams Emergency Hospital, which at 8,000m2 stands as the largest ER in the world. It carries the name of philanthropist Sylvan Adams, who donated around $28 million for its establishment.
Opening the event, Israel’s President Isaac Herzog spoke of his appreciation for the dedication of the medical staff, and of his pride on the opening of the new emergency hospital. He thanked Sylvan Adams for his generous support of the Israeli people and said, “You are a true ambassador of Israeli society”.
Prime Minister Lapid added his thanks and said to Sylvan Adams, “Both of us are children of Holocaust survivors. You were brought up with a strong sense of responsibility for the State of Israel, for the next generation, for its welfare and for its values. Your father, Marcel, of blessed memory, would certainly have been proud of you today. On behalf of the State of Israel, thank you.”
The facility is equipped with the latest technology in patient assessment enabling patients to self-triage, scanning in their identity documents or medical referral, and checking temperature and blood pressure levels before being assigned a medical professional for treatment. At each stage, the recording of any abnormal or critical results will immediately alert the medical staff. In addition, the hospital has dedicated sections for care to be provided based on the patient’s condition and psychiatric classification, a short-term hospitalization department, and includes the “Maor” Center for the acute care of victims of sexual assault. The technologies will enable greater streamlining of triage patient assessment, lower waiting times, and more efficient and effective medical care provision.
The new technologies being implemented include:
Facial recognition station and digital self-registration: This station will be located next to the traditional reception and will allow people to self-register using facial recognition (identity verification using an identifying document, scanning documents such as a medical referral; entering demographic details etc). At the end of the process, a case is opened in the hospital’s computerized system and the patient is instructed to move on to the next stage of care provision.
Station for “self-triage”: Following reception, the patient arrives at the triage station, where can check their own temperature, blood pressure, pulse, and blood oxygen levels. The data is fed automatically to the patient’s computerized file. In the instance of high concern, a medical professional is immediately notified.
Navigation robots: The facility is equipped with mobile robots to help patients navigate the emergency hospital as well as departments outside the facility. The robots greet the visitors and offer them help in finding their destination.
App for the patient to stay informed during their visit: The app will provide real-time reports to the patient about their status, will carry out checks and deliver responses, provide advice, inform the patient of the risk of hospitalization, and will also send a satisfaction survey.
The building was designed by Sharon Architects in collaboration with Rani Ziss Architects, and has three floors. The façade of the new building faces Weizmann Street with a reception and triage area where initial tests on the patient can be carried out. Medical care is provided by the medical staff and nurses who specialize in emergency care, with knowledge of a variety of areas of medicine and who are skilled in performing complicated and life-saving procedures.
On the ground floor of the new building there is an inpatient department that includes spacious halls that are being upgraded to the highest standards. The inpatient hall includes around 100 monitored beds – the largest number of beds in emergency care departments in Israel. If needed, during an emergency event, this number can be doubled. Also on the ground floor is a shock and trauma room with advanced equipment and an imaging area that includes two CT machines – the largest number in emergency care departments in Israel. This includes use of groundbreaking artificial intelligence for viewing clinical findings in real time.
The first floor includes an ambulatory wing with 30 medical testing rooms and a large treatment hall. This wing also provides professional treatment from the emergency care team, and now, for the first time in Israel, is reinforced by professional advisors in the fields of cardiology, neurology, dermatology, and sexual health. To provide fast and effective treatment, upon reception patients can also be referred to dedicated emergency rooms in the following areas: orthopaedics, eye, and head and neck surgery.
In addition, for the first time in Ichilov and Tel Aviv there is also a psychiatric emergency room.
On the rooftop floor there will be a short-term hospitalization and inpatient department with 32 monitored beds designed for hospitalization for patients who need further tests or continued treatment. The opening of this department is expected to reduce demand in other departments, and in particular, the internal medicine department.
On the upper floor on the roof of the building is an amphitheater that is open for the patients while they are waiting for their medical treatment. This includes lawns, benches and coffee stations, and it can also hold events for up to 500 people.
With the opening of the emergency care wing, there will be additional medical staff, nurses and helpers to provide the best and quickest treatment in Israel.
Sylvan Adams, businessman and philanthropist: “At Ichilov, I am happy to provide the residents of the State of Israel with the largest and most advanced emergency room of its kind. The innovative technology, the worldview that places the patient at the center, and the high level of infrastructure creates an advanced level of service and treatment for the benefit of the State of Israel.”
Professor Ronni Gamzu, Ichilov CEO: “Our emergency room treats complicated cases on a large scale and therefore the challenge of providing outstanding service is significant. We are determined to change this and to prove that it is possible to demand and to receive quick, outstanding treatment even during busy periods. After over five years of strenuous work, I am proud to lead the medical and technological revolution in guaranteeing the best and quickest possible treatment in Israel. I am grateful to Mr Sylvan Adams, whose generosity has fulfilled Ichilov’s dream on behalf of the more than 250,000 Israelis who visit Ichilov’s emergency care wing every year.”
Photo credit: Jenny Yerushalmi / Courtesy
For further details: Ya’ara at [email protected]
