Prime Minister Netanyahu Visits MDA Defibrillator Stand in the Knesset
With National Defibrillator Day taking place in Israel this week, Magen David Adom headed to the Knesset to teach life-saving skills in the Israeli seat of parliament
As part of the National Defibrillator Awareness Day, a project in conjuction with Mifal Hapayis, the Local Authority Commission and Magen David Adom, MDA teams visited the Knesset to teach life-saving skills to those present. They set up stalls in the corridors of the Knesset with training mannikins and defibrillators, and demonstrated how east it is to save lives.
Along with MDA Director General, MDA paramedics and EMTs taught CPR and the importance of the defibrillator in saving lives to politicians including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Knesset Chairman Amir Ohana, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, Chairman of Hamachane Hamamlachti Party MK Benny Gantz, Chairman of the health committee MK Uriel Busso, and other staff working in the Knesset building.
At the same, the health committee held a special meeting along with the Health Ministry, Mifal Hapayis, Magen David Adom, local authorities and others, regarding the placement of public access defibrillators, and improving public awareness of the importance of the use of the defibrillators.
Magen David Adom has placed thousands of public access defibrillators across the country, in cooperation with local authorities and Mifal Hapayis, that has placed defibs on 600 of its stands.
In Israel, some 8,000 cases are reported annually of sudden cardiac arrest, with half taking place outside hospitals. This is the second most common cause of death in Israel. Public awareness is low, and the number of times a defibrillator is used by a member of the public is just a few dozen, and survival rates of pre-hospital cardiac arrest are around 4%, lower than the global average. Public use of a defibrillator is a vital first link in the chain of survival, and increases a patient's chance of survival even prior to the arrival of medical teams.
MDA Director General, Eli Bin: "Magen David Adom life-saving stalls were visited today by several senior members of the Knesset, who stopped what they were doing in order to lead by example and learn how anyone can save lives, even with no prior medical knowledge. I'd like to thank Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Knesset Chairman Amir Ohana, and the many MKs who visited our stands today, and gave saving lives the highest priority."
