The Health Ministry this morning (Wednesday) published the National Programs report intended to improve the quality of care in Israel’s hospitals.
Among large hospitals, Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv stood out for speed of access to a physician – 80% of patients were seen within one hour of registration in the emergency department and 90% were triaged within 15 minutes. By contrast, Sheba Tel Hashomer in Ramat Gan and Meir in Kfar Saba received low scores – only 40% were seen by a doctor within an hour.
Among smaller hospitals, Laniado in Netanya excelled, with 99% of emergency patients seeing a physician within one hour. By contrast, Hadassah hospitals in Jerusalem were at the bottom of the list: only 25% of patients at Hadassah Ein Kerem’s emergency department saw a doctor within an hour.
Alongside service metrics, the report devotes a wide chapter to preparedness for cyber threats amid increasing attacks on medical institutions. Sheba Medical Center was ranked as the leading and most secure, presenting investments in system upgrades, emergency drills and advanced defense projects.
The Health Ministry noted that in 2024 three genuine cyberattacks were identified and neutralized, each with potential to cause a complete shutdown of hospitals, on a scale reminiscent of the incident at Hillel Yaffe Hospital.
In cardiology, Sheba excelled with a large number of wireless pacemakers in 2023 – 73 – and 51 in 2024. Hadassah was second with 62 pacemakers in 2023 and 37 in 2024. Following them were Beilinson in third place, Shaare Zedek, Soroka and Shamir.
The report also shows an improvement in neonatal intensive care activity. According to the report, the NICU at Shaare Zedek received the highest budgetary support. After that came Sheba, Rambam, Hadassah, Nahariya, Ichilov, Assaf Harofe and Wolfson.
Ichilov recorded the largest increase in IVF patients, with 2,900 treatment cycles.
Asaf Harofe Hospital in Be’er Ya’akov and Shaare Zedek in Jerusalem also reached relatively high figures, with more than 2,400 treatment cycles each.
By contrast, hospitals that did not meet Health Ministry targets and saw decreases in patient numbers included Rambam in Haifa – only 391 treatment cycles, a decline compared with the previous year – and Nahariya Hospital with 383 treatment cycles.