1200 patients moved underground

Professor Yitshak Kreiss, Director General of Israel’s Sheba Medical Centre, has praised the “amazing” support received from Australian medical professionals during the recent Iranian missile attacks on Israel.

Speaking via Zoom to over 150 participants at a Zionist Federation of Australia (ZFA) event titled “Inside Israel’s Underground Hospital System”, Kreiss revealed the extraordinary measures taken to protect patients at the Tel Hashomer based hospital during the conflict.

The Sheba chief described how the hospital mobilised 1200 patients from its daily census of 2000 to underground shelters within hours when Iran launched its missile attack.

Only one piece of shrapnel hit the medical centre during the entire conflict.

“We were amazed by the amount of support and commitment we felt from our Australian colleagues,” Kreiss said.

“[They said], ‘What do you need? What can we send you? Is there something that is any kind of knowledge that we can provide?’ We felt that.”

In an unprecedented move, Sheba deployed a field hospital in an underground parking garage, creating what Kreiss called “the new protected underground neuroscience wing of Sheba”.

The innovative solution accommodated over 100 patients and proved so effective that departments requested to remain there even after the immediate threat passed.

Kreiss, who visited Australia earlier this year for Sheba’s first Arc Summit outside Israel, said that Australia would serve as the hub for Sheba’s Pacific region innovation platform.

“We decided that Australia is going to be the heart, the hub for the Pacific,” he said, highlighting partnerships with Melbourne and Sydney hospital networks.

The collaboration focuses on using innovation to transform healthcare and drive economic growth.

Sheba, Israel’s largest hospital with 11,000 staff, maintained 75 to 80 per cent of normal patient attendance during the war.

Kreiss emphasised the hospital’s mission as “a beacon of stability” and its commitment to treating all patients, including Palestinians.

“We are extending a hand all over the world,” he said, describing Sheba as “a hospital of peace”.

The event was facilitated by ZFA CEO Alon Cassuto, with Australian Friends of Sheba Medical Centre CEO Idan Goldberger expressing gratitude for the ongoing Australian Jewish community support.

Kreiss acknowledged the global Jewish response to Sheba and Israel after October 7: “Five minutes after October 7, all the Jewish world was with us.”