For most of its history, Israel has remained unaware of its mental health needs. Since the Yom Kippur War, there has been a growing awareness about the importance of mental health and its treatment in public discourse. Today, mental health is a common household word.
Especially, since the beginning of the current war with Hamas, trauma and anxiety have impacted all levels and sectors of society. As a result there is an exponential growth in the need for immediate mental health care and intervention. To illustrate this point, there were 9,000 registered victims of Terror with Israel’s National Insurance Institute prior the war. Now, that number has jumped to 60,000.
For more than 130 years, Herzog Medical Center has championed Israel’s mentally ill providing a broad range of mental health and psychotrauma care services. For example, separate Inpatient Psychiatric Departments offer separate men’s and women’s facilities to treat disorders, ranging from schizophrenia and bipolar disorder to depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. An Outpatient Community Mental Health Center provides ongoing ambulatory care to some 2,000 daycare patients who suffer from less severe mental health issues.
With the War, Herzog has expanded its mental health and psychotrauma care, to provide outreach services including a Mental Health Clinic for at-Risk Adults, the Metiv Israel Center for Treatment of Psychotrauma and helping treat soldiers and security personnel through a Mental Health Clinic established in connection with Israel’s Ministry of Defense.
Separate Inpatient Psychiatric Departments provide separate inpatient psychiatric care for men and women. It offers advanced treatment for those suffering from schizophrenia, bi-polar disorder, depression, Post Trauma and related mental health challenges.
The newly constructed Glassman Ambulatory Health Center houses all Herzog’s outpatient care. A Community Mental Health Center provides critical non-residential services for 2,000 children, adolescents and adults each month. Interventions address a range of behavioral problems ranging from anxiety and depression all the way to obsessive compulsive disorders, psychosis, dementia and early onset Alzheimer’s disease.
helps young adults, aged 18 – 25, who have a heightened risk to develop mental illness or who are already suffering from existing disorders.
provides mental health and psychotrauma care for security personnel, discharged soldiers, police, and fire-fighters from Israel’s south and greater Jerusalem area.
The Center treats the victims of terror attacks, domestic violence, Holocaust survivors and those who have suffered from the rocket attacks in the south and north of Israel. It also provides trauma training to professionals throughout Israel.