Magen David Adom (MDA for short) is the only ambulance service in Israel. Magen David Adom was created in response to the Arab riots in 1929. Jews living in Palestine during this period of time saw the necessity for a quick and responsive form of medical help. They felt that an ambulance service was the best way to provide quick transportation and treatment. Therefore, Magen David Adom was founded in 1930 in Tel Aviv to meet this need. The MDA building was about the size of a small shack and the only assets that they had were one ambulance full of basic medical supplies (4.) Here, in Tel Aviv was the beginning of what would later become a huge international organization.
Before understanding Magen David Adom in Jerusalem, one must know the facts about this organization. Magen David Adom means “The Red Star of David” in English. MDA is also a part of the International Red Cross. In recent years, MDA has teamed up with the Red Crescent Movement. The Red Crescent Movement is an equal movement to MDA. It too is a part of the International Red Cross. Both MDA and the Red Crescent Movement joined the International Red Cross in 2006 where Hillary Clinton was present to announce the happy occasion. The Red Crescent movement can be found in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Magen David Adom wont put a cross or star on their ambulance because it is a Jewish service and the Red Crescent movement only has a Crescent on their ambulance for the same reason (3.)
Magen David Adom and the Red Crescent Movement follow seven important Fundamental Principals:
- Humanity: To protect human life and ensure respect for all human beings with cooperation and friendship amongst everyone.
- Impartiality: No discrimination of race, religion, class or political opinions.
- Neutrality: No taking sides in any situation
- Independence: They are independent movements and will work alongside other movements but will not necessarily always take the same stance.
- Voluntary Service: No one is hired prompted by desire for gain.
- Unity: There is only 1 Red Cross, MDA or Red Crescent Movement but all are open to everyone in either community or society.
- University: They committed to helping nationally and worldwide with equal status amongst other nations. For example: MDA was part of the Katrina Relief effort in America after Hurricane Katrina.
(3.)
With the facts given above, one is now able to understand the over all function of this organization and can now understand the purpose of the Jerusalem Magen David Adom Station. The location of the Magen David Adom Jerusalem main station is in Romema, Jerusalem and is the third MDA location. This obviously means that it is part of the Jerusalem Region. The first building was erected in 1963, renovated in 1970 and is going to be renovated in 2008. The expansion was supposed to begin in February of 2008 but unfortunately there has not been any work done on it since the placing of the corner stone back in February. This station has a paid staff of about 60 paramedics, 90 Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs), 160 ambulances drivers, and 600 constant and solid volunteers. The Jerusalem Region is the largest region in the country, supplying service from the border of the West Bank Territories to the Jordan Valley and from Beit Shemesh to the Dead Sea. This means that there are about 1 million people in this service area. In fact, in 2007, there were about 3,150 volunteers for the Jerusalem region (1.) This region includes stations located in Pisgat Zeev,Makor Chaim, Ofrah, Talmon, Efrat, Tekoa, Gush Etzion, Zur Hadassah, The Old City, Beitar Ilit, Biet Shemesh ,Maaleh Adumim, Givat Zeev, Megilot, and the Knesset. The Jerusalem region also includes blood banks, regional and national dispatching center, regional management, and both volunteer and training departments (2.) It also has the highest amount of blood usage in the country. However, all of the blood that is donated is used 100% in the Israeli Defense force and makes up 95% of the blood found in other Israeli hospitals. The MDA Jerusalem region also supplies service to both of the Hadassah hospitals, Shaare Zedek, and Bikur Holim (5.) These are the three hospitals located in Jerusalem.
An interesting fact is that Magen David Adom has two different kinds of ambulances. One kind is just a regular ambulance with basic medical supplies. These are ambulances that usually just drive around the city and are placed at special events. They are recognized by their colors yellow and red. There are also intensive care ambulances, which are placed in highly populated areas, and areas that need high security and control. They can be defined by their colors white and red. Some of these ambulances can be found around Jerusalem on Ben Yahuda Street and near the Knesset. There are also other vehicles that Jerusalem uses for medical transportation as well. They use motorcycles and have equipped them with a large metal box on the back including the most important life saving necessities. These motorcycles are designed especially for the Jerusalem region because of the Old City. It is very hard to get an ambulance in to specific areas of the Old City so these motorcycles carrying supplies can rush to a scene and get the situation under control until the person can be moved or until an ambulance can get within range of the patient (5.)
One thing that Magen David Adom in Jerusalem places a lot of importance on is strategic placement. MDA Jerusalem region not only strategically places their ambulances, but they have also strategically placed their absorption centers. These are centers where ambulances can be dispatched. MDA Jerusalem recognizes the fact that Jerusalem is a highly populated city full of religious tensions and that an accident or attack can occur at any moment. Therefore they strategically place ambulances at high-risk areas to be able to have faster response times and therefore have a better chance at saving a patients life. The absorption centers have also been erected in strategically chosen locations in order to also provide a quick response time. These absorption centers also have certain areas that they supply service to, and within these areas there are designated hospitals that people are taken to. This is designed to ensure efficiency and accuracy. For example, the response time for an ambulance that arrived on the scene at the attack on July 22nd near King David Hotel was 4 minutes and 23 seconds. That is because there was an ambulance nearby that was strategically placed there since it is considered a high-risk area. MDA posts that position every day and this ensured a quick response time and fortunately saved lives. Nobody was killed in this particular attack (5.)
For people who are interested in volunteering for Magen David Adom, there are various options. However, the most popular option for American’s is Hagshama. Hagshama heavily subsidizes trips to Israel and training for participants. However, anybody who wants to volunteer for MDA must train at the main station in Romema, Jerusalem. Training programs like Hagshama also provide activities like trips to the Old City and Mount Herzl to help participants get a better understanding of Jerusalem. It is definitely a great experience for anybody who is interested in the medical field. No experience is required and everybody does what he or she is comfortable with. All the training is provided during the training sessions in Romema (5.)
So what can be done to help this organization that started out with only one ambulance? Well, for starters, stop donating ambulances! The Jerusalem Region has too many ambulances but not enough medical supplies. Communities like to donate ambulances to Jerusalem because they know that it is the biggest region and they like to see their name on the side of an ambulance. They like to donate something that will be seen by many people. However, what Jerusalem really needs are defibrillators, syringes, heart monitors, and other medical supplies. Communities are not donating these items because they know that people will probably not recognize their name on the side of a defibrillator or heart monitor (5.)
Magen David Adom is very vital to the existence of the Israeli population. The Jerusalem Region is not just the biggest but is also an example to the rest of the organization. Hopefully, with the help of donations and volunteering from other countries and communities, Magen David Adom will be able to continue saving lives every day.
Bibliography
1.) American Friends of Magen David Adom. 7/21/2008/.
http://www.afmda.org/
2.) Magen David Adom in Israel. 7/21/2008. http://www.mdais.org/e/295/.
3.) Magen David Adom in Israel. 7/21/2008. http://www.mdais.org/e/RC_
4.) MDA in Israel. 7/21/2008.
http://www.afmda.org/
5.) Noormid, Michael. Phone Interview. 7/20/2008.
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