About the City
Ashdod is Israel’s fifth largest and fastest growing city, with more than 225,000 residents. Tens of thousands of families live in Ashdod, including
more new immigrants than in any other Israeli city, with no medical facility, not even a forward emergency or trauma room. Time and again, in critical situations, a great deal of unnecessary suffering is caused and
lives are lost transporting children and adults to hospitals in other cities.
Ashdod is also Israel’s main industrial port, whose importance significantly increased and was highlighted during the recent war in Lebanon with the virtual closing of the other port in Haifa. Ashdod lies a mere 25 kilometers from the border with Gaza, and the prognosis for the foreseeable future unfortunately forebodes additional and ongoing need for treatment of traumatic injury from rocket and other terrorist attacks.
Of the 28 medical emergency rooms in Israel, just 3 are located in the country’s southern region. This isn’t due to a lower demand for medical services, but rather to a lack of development and funding.
Seventy-eight percent of salaried workers in Ashdod earn below the average income in Israel. More than 21% of Ashdod families and 29% of the children in Ashdod live below the poverty line. The Ashdod Emergency Medical Center will provide all of these adults and children high quality medical care.
Saving Lives: emergency care and community health for Israel's fastest growing city