Geographical Locations - Israel

• (Statistical) Number of Inhabitants per Doctor: 345
• CIA World Factbook : Israel

Organisations and Networks

UN and Multinational

• WHO
  - WHO Country Profile - Israel
  - WHO - Tobacco control: Country Profile: Israel
  - WHO - Environmental Burden of Disease: Country Profile – Israel
  - WHO – Progress in the Prevention of Injuries in the WHO European Region: Israel
• WHO Regional Office for Europe (EURO) in Copenhagen (Denmark)

Government

• Ministry of Health

Non-Government

• Health - Israel
  "A forum for discussions of current issues and research related to Israeli health policy via electronic media. The Health-Israel discussion group was launched in January 1997 and now has over 100 members. The membership consists of leading policymakers, managers, and researchers from Israel, the U.S., Holland, Canada, and other countries. It is hosted by the JDC-Brookdale Institute in conjunction with the Israel National Institute for Health Policy and Health Services Research"
• Israel Cancer Association
• Israel Association for the Advancement of Women's Health (IAAWH)
  "A voluntary organization established in 1994 by a group of social scientists and health professionals to address women's health needs in Israel. As the only organization in Israel whose single agenda is women's health, IAAWH's message is positive and pro-active: not disease and illness, but health promotion and well-being. We are dedicated to improving the quality of life of all women: Israeli Jewish, Muslim and Christian women, new and veteran immigrants, religious and secular, urban and rural, and women of all socioeconomic classes, ages, and sexual orientations"
• Israel Society for the Prevention of Alcoholism
• Israel Women's Network
  Providing comprehensive resources and a particular topic refers to health
• Jerusalem AIDS Project
• Shilo
  SHILO is Jerusalem's Family Planning, Educational and Counselling Centre.
• Society for Patient's Rights in Israel
• Yad Sarah
  Yad Sarah is the largest voluntary organisation in Israel providing a spectrum of free or nomincal cost services designed to make life easier for sick, disabled and elderly people and their families.

Academic Institutions

• Ben Gurion University, Faculty of Health Sciences
• Hebrew University
  - Department of Community Dentistry
• Hadassah School of Public Health and Community Medicine
• University of Tel Aviv, School of Social Work

National Policy and Related Documents

• Selected Health For All Indicators 2003
  This publication presents Health Indicators in Israel as they have been presented at the end of the year 2003 to the WHO European area. The purpose is to update the HFA (Health for All) database that includes indicators about the health system and the health of the population of each country. It reports on such selected demographic and socioeconomic statistics as: Mortality; Morbidity, Disability and Hospital Discharges; Lifestyles; Environment; Health Care Resources; Health Care Utilization and Costs; and Maternal and Child Health.

Reports, Guidelines, and Projects

• Alcohol Drinking Patterns and Prevalence of Alcohol-Abuse and Dependence in the Israel National Health Survey
  Background: Coexistence of disparate religious/cultural mores with regard to alcohol drinking within the changing social milieu of Israel provides an informative environment for investigation of alcohol consumption patterns and alcohol-related mental disorders. Method: A national population-based survey of Israeli adults was conducted as part of the WHO/World Mental Health Survey initiative. Logistic regression models accommodated the complex sampling design and accounted for potential confounders. Results: Half of the 4,859 respondents reported any alcohol consumption in the year prior to interview; 5% drink 3 or more times weekly. DSM-IV criteria for alcohol abuse or dependence (lifetime) were met by 4.3% of respondents. Significantly higher rates were found among males (AOR, adjusted odds ratio=7.3), younger adults (AOR=5.0), immigrants from the former Soviet Union (AOR=2.0), and those who were never married (AOR=1.6). Limitations: Under-reporting remains a potential concern in health behavior surveys, particularly in the face of opposing religious norms. Conclusions: The lifetime prevalence of alcohol abuse in Israel is identical to other European countries while drinking levels are considerably lower, suggesting a biological sensitivity alongside socio-cultural factors. [author abstract] [Isr J Psychiatry Relat Sci, Vol 44 No. 2 (2007): 126–135]
• Co-payments for Health Services: Everyone Agrees that Something Needs to be Done but Nobody Does Anything
  There is broad agreement that access to health services should be as egalitarian as possible. There is also broad agreement that co-payments for drugs, visits to doctors and tests make these services less accessible to low-income persons. And there is agreement that the degree of access to health services influences a person’s health. Thus, there have been many proposals to improve equality of access to health services by eliminating or reducing co-payments and replacing them with alternative sources of funding. If everyone agrees, the question that begs to be asked is: Why isn’t anything being done? Why doesn’t the government take the steps needed to improve equality of access to health services? [A position paper by Adav Center and PHR-Israel (Physicians for Human Rights – Israel), July 2008]
• Environmental Health in Israel: Towards Enhancing Capacity and Capabilities
  "At the end of May 2005, Yad Hanadiv (the Rothschild Foundation) hosted a Committee of experts in the field of environmental health, invited to Israel for a week of meetings to offer recommendations as to what is needed to improve capacity in the area of environmental health in Israel… The Committee considered the major components necessary for an effective environmental health programme, assessed the Israeli situation in light of these components, and developed a series of recommendations… The Committee heard many concerns about environmental pollution and suspected health impacts. These include air pollution, surface and ground water contamination, worker and public exposure to hazardous chemicals resulting from industrial leaks and explosions, elevated national and regional cancer rates, elevated asthma rates, possibly higher than normal local birth defects, and more. Although the Committee is not aware of quantified estimates of the environmental-health burden in Israel, given what is known about environmental health in other countries and what the Committee learned about pollution and potentially environmental-related disease in Israel, it concluded that Israel’s environmental burden of disease is likely to be significant. However, Israel lacks sufficient expertise to assess this burden and has only limited environmental and health policies designed to reduce it." [Yad Hanadiv (the Rothschild Foundation), c2005]
• Health Care Systems in Transition - Israel
• Inequalities in Use of Health Services among Jews and Arabs in Israel
  Objectives: To compare the levels of utilization of health services in Jews and Arabs taking into account differences in levels of socioeconomic status (SES) in a country with a National Health Insurance Law (NHIL). Data Source/Study Setting: Across-sectional National Health Interview Surveywas carried out in Israel based on a random sample of telephone numbers as part of the EUROHIS project (WHO European Health Interview Survey 2003–2004). Study Design: A random telephone survey included 9,352 interviews. Questions included use of health care services, health status, and socioeconomic variables. Principal Findings: After adjusting for sex, age, income, education, marital status, and self-reported chronic diseases, Arabs more often reported visiting a family physician (odds ratio [OR]51.56, 95 percent confidence interval [CI]51.35–1.81) and less often reported visiting a specialist (OR50.73, 95 percent CI50.60–0.89) compared with Jews. In addition, the odds ratio for hospitalization was similar among Arabs and Jews (OR51.16, 95 percent CI50.97–1.38). SES was associated with utilization of health care services only in the Jewish population. Conclusions: A different pattern of utilization of health care services was observed in Arabs and Jews. This was not explained by differences in socioeconomic levels. More research is needed regarding the distribution of services between Jews and Arabs. [author abstract] [Health Services Research, June 2007; 42(3 Pt 1): 1008–1019]
• Routine testing for IgG antibodies against hepatitis A virus in Israel
  Background: Viral hepatitis is highly endemic in Israel, with the hepatitis A virus (HAV) responsible for most cases. Improved socioeconomic factors, as well as the universal vaccination of infants (introduced in 1999) has resulted in a decline in infection rates in Israel. This study examines the benefits of routine testing for anti-HAV IgG in high-risk population. Methods: A retrospective examination of the files of teenage and adult patients (aged 16–99 years; mean 33.9) in two primary care clinics found 1,017 patients who had been tested for anti-HAV IgG antibodies for either general healthcare screening or ongoing follow-up for chronic illness. Seropositive patients were then asked regarding recall of past hepatitis (i.e. jaundice, regardless of viral etiology); post-exposure prophylaxis with immune serum immunoglobulin (ISG); and active immunization with inactivated virus. Seronegative patients were subsequently sent for active immunization. Results: Of the1,017 patient records studied (503 male, 514 female), a total of 692 were seropositive (354 males, 338 females; P = 0.113). Seropositivity rates increased with age (p < 0.005), and were highest among those born in Middle Eastern countries other than Israel (91.3%) and lowest among immigrants from South America (44.1%; P < 0.005). 456 of the seropositive patients were interviewed, of whom only 91 recalled past illness while 103 remembered receiving post-exposure prophylaxis (ISG) and 8 active vaccination. Those who were unaware of past infection were more likely to have been vaccinated with ISG than those who were aware (26.3% vs. 7.7%; p < 0.005). Conclusion: The relatively high prevalence rate of anti-HAV seropositivity in our study may me due to the fact that the study was conducted in a primary care clinic or that it took place in Jerusalem, a relatively poor and densely populated Israeli city. Most of the seropostive patients had no recollection of prior infection, which can be explained by the fact that most hepatitis A infections occur during childhood and are asymptomatic. Routine testing for anti-HAV IgG in societies endemic for HAV would help prevent seropositive patients from receiving either postexposure or preventive immunization and target seronegative patients for preventive vaccination. [author abstract] [BMC Public Health 2005, 5: 60]
• Screening and Treating Amblyopia: Are We Making a Difference?
  Purpose: To determine the rate of amblyopia in native Jewish Israelis compared with those who immigrated from the former Soviet Union (U.S.S.R.) after they were 10 years of age. Methods: Health records of all 16-year-old subjects examined in the Israel Defense Forces Recruitment Center between 1998 and 2003 were analyzed. The number of subjects with best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) of 6/12 or less in at least one eye among native Israelis and among those who immigrated to Israel from the U.S.S.R. after they were 10 years of age was determined. Subjects who had any ocular disease except cataract, corneal opacity, strabismus, or ptosis were excluded. Results: Of 305,712 subjects examined between 1998 and 2003, 292,255 were enrolled in the study. Of those, 260,186 (89%) were born in Israel and 32,069 (11%) were born in the U.S.S.R. and immigrated to Israel after they were 10 years of age. There were 2565 (0.98%) native Israelis and 483 (1.5%) immigrants who had BCVA of 6/12 or less in at least one eye (χ² test, P < 0.00001). The rate of amblyopia among subjects who had refractive errors was 14.6% among immigrants, as opposed to 8.0% among native Israelis (P < 0.0001), whereas amblyopia rates among those with strabismus, cataract, or ptosis were similar in native Israelis and immigrants (34.4%, 38.6%, 12.8% as opposed to 34%, 37.5%, 15.4%, respectively, P < 0.5– 0.61). Conclusions: The difference in the rate of refractive amblyopia as opposed to strabismic and deprivation amblyopia may be due to the difference in vision screening methods between both countries. [author abstract] [Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, May 2007, Vol. 48, No. 5, pp. 2084-2088]
• Suicide Ideation, Planning and Attempts: Results from the Israel National Health Survey
  Objectives: To establish the lifetime prevalence rates of suicide ideations, plans and attempts, and to identify the conditional risks of suicide attempts following the prior onset of suicide ideation or planning. Method: A representative sample extracted from the National Population Register of non-institutionalized residents, aged 21 or older, were interviewed at home between May 2003 and April 2004 using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview which included questions on suicide ideations, plans and attempts The final sample included 4,859 respondents. Results: About 5.5% of the adults reported that they have thought of suicide, and 1.4 % that they have attempted to commit suicide during their lifetime. The year following the onset of ideation constitutes the year of highest risk for suicide attempt. Conclusion: The risk of suicide attempt is highest among individuals with mental health disorders, while the transition from suicide ideation to suicide attempt among them is more likely to be planned. The youngest age group has the highest odds of suicide attempts and the highest odds of impulsive suicide attempts. [author abstract] [Isr J Psychiatry Relat Sci, Vol 44 No. 2 (2007): 136–143]
• The Re-Emergence of Pertussis in Israel
  Background: Pertussis is the only vaccine-preventable disease that has re-emerged in Israel. The reported crude incidence of the disease increased 16-fold since 1998. Objectives: To describe the epidemiology of pertussis and explain the substantial increase in reported pertussis incidence in Israel in recent years. Methods: Crude and specific pertussis incidence by age, patient immunization status, hospitalization rate, and national immunization coverage rate were calculated from information provided by the public health offices of the Ministry of Health. Results: The reported crude incidence of pertussis increased from 1–2/100,000 in 1994–98 to 23/100,000 in 2004. The trend was observed in all age groups, being most prominent in infants under age 1 year and in children aged 5–14. The incidence of pertussis was substantially higher in unvaccinated and partly vaccinated compared to fully vaccinated persons. Fifteen percent of notified cases were hospitalized, but in infants under age 1 year the hospitalization rate was 50%. National pertussis immunization coverage by age 2 years was stable during the last 10 years. Conclusions: There are several possible explanations for the re-emergence of pertussis in Israel. The most plausible reason seems to be the waning of vaccine-induced immunity in face of infrequent natural exposure to the infectious agent and lack of a pertussis vaccine booster dose after age 1. [author abstract] [IMAJ (Israel Medical Association Journal), Vol 8, May 2006, pp.308-311]
• Who are the Sedentary People in Israel? A Public Health Indicator
  Background: Increasing physical activity and thereby reducing a sedentary lifestyle can lower the risk of chronic diseases. Raising the population’s involvement in physical activity is a major challenge for public health and healthcare services. Objectives: To identify subpopulations with a sedentary lifestyle and low levels of adherence to physical activity recommendations. Methods: The Israel Center for Disease Control performed two national surveys during 2002–2003, interviewing 7,307 Jewish Israelis and 1,826 Arab Israelis over age 21. Respondents were asked if they engaged in physical activity lasting at least 20 consecutive minutes, and if so how frequently: less than once a week, once or twice a week, nearly every day or every day. Results: Arab respondents were less physically active than Jewish respondents after adjusting for gender, age, level of religiosity, marital status, education, self-reported health, smoking, body mass index, and type of survey. Multiple logistic regression analysis run separately for Jews and Arabs found a more sedentary lifestyle, in both groups, among women, the less educated, those who were married and those with poor subjective health. Among Jews, younger age, increased religiosity, smoking and high BMI were associated with a sedentary lifestyle. Conclusions: The Jewish population is in need of more targeted and specific interventions for lower adhering subpopulations, such as women, the less educated and those with other risk factors. In the Arab population a more thorough understanding of the benefits of physical activity is needed; however, it seems that a general intervention is required to decrease the prevalence of a sedentary lifestyle all round. [author abstract] [IMAJ (Israel Medical Association Journal), 2005; 7: 694–699]

Educational Resources

• Bridges
  The goal of Bridges, the Israeli-Palestinian Public Health magazine, is to promote the exchange of public health information of common interest between the Palestinian and Israeli public health professionals. Each issue of Bridges is guided by principles such as the importance of showing both the adverse impact of the conflict on both sides and the positive cooperative efforts that are taking place; a focus not only on scientific, health issues but also on issues of dialogue/peace, human rights, and the socio-economic determinants of health.
• CDC - Travel Information: Middle East
• Golden Hour Medical Information Center
  Founded by doctors from the Department of Family Health Care in Haifa, the mission of this site is to spread the use of evidence-based medicine in Israel.
• Israel Drug Registry
• Library of Congress, Country Study: Israel
• WWW Virtual Library: Israel