Social Services

Shaare Zedek Medical Center offers support and counseling to patients and their family members for issues arising as a result of the injury or illness:

• Coping emotionally with changes in physical functioning
• Coping with the effects of extended hospitalization
• Assistance in establishing patient-family communication channels
• Therapy in cases of depression: post-partum; prolonged, chronic or terminal illness; difficult treatments; disability
• Preparation for complex treatments and follow-up
• Support after the death of a family member and assistance with arrangements
• Assisting patients and family members with technical aspects of the hospital stay
• Planning to leave the hospital: accompanying the family through the transition to home life and the daily routine, contacting medical and para-medical professionals in the community to ensure continuation of care, assisting with Bituach Leumi (National Insurance Institute) and helping with patient's rights

We make every effort to minimize the social, psychological and economic ramifications the patient’s medical condition may have on the patient and his or her family. Most treatments are individual or for the family, but we also offer group therapy for continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis patients, parents of children on dialysis, patients facing cardio-thoracic surgery, patients before discharge, hematology patients, diabetic children, women hospitalized due to high-risk pregnancy, and more. Other group sessions are opened as the need arises.

The team of social workers provides a response to diverse populations of all ages and at all stages of life, including:

• patients dealing with acute illness, chronic illness, terminal illness, infectious diseases, and various handicaps
• at-risk populations: children, the elderly, patients who are alone / incapacitated, Holocaust survivors, drug addicts / alcoholics, homeless
• women who are pregnant, undergoing fertility treatments, those who have lost a pregnancy or have given birth to a child with a handicap or deformity
• domestic violence
• mental illness
• trauma victims: road accidents, work accidents, home accidents, terror victims, mass-casualty events
• foreign workers, patients who lack residency status 

We have 29 experienced social workers on staff, most of whom hold a MSW (Masters degree in Social Work) with specialization in a specific medical field. They routinely participate in conferences, professional forums and advanced courses in Israel and abroad.