The COVID-19 pandemic created a global health emergency without precedent—overwhelming hospitals, exposing fragile healthcare systems, and placing extraordinary strain on medical professionals worldwide.
Hadassah’s response was grounded in one principle: medical knowledge saves lives when it is shared.
A Global Hub of COVID-19 Medical Expertise
From the earliest stages of the pandemic, Hadassah hospitals treated more COVID-19 patients than any other hospital in Israel. Its teams developed advanced clinical protocols for intensive care, ventilation management, vaccination logistics, and continuity of hospital operations under crisis conditions.
Hadassah International played a central role in mobilizing this expertise internationally, enabling Hadassah hospitals physicians, nurses, and specialists to support healthcare systems facing severe overload.
This support took multiple forms:
- On-site medical delegations
- Government-level advisory missions
- Professional training and peer-to-peer exchange
- Webinars and remote consultations
- Distribution of clinical protocols and manuals
Supporting National Health Systems Under Pressure
Romania: Emergency Advisory Mission
At the invitation of the Romanian government, an Israeli medical delegation including Dr. Marc Romain, senior intensive care specialist at Hadassah Ein Kerem, traveled to Romania during one of the country’s deadliest COVID-19 waves.
The delegation assessed hospital conditions, met with senior government and emergency officials, and worked directly with hospital leadership to formulate short- and long-term recommendations. Romanian hospitals were experiencing extreme overcrowding, shortages of ventilators and oxygen, and unsustainable pressure on emergency rooms.
Drawing on experience gained at Hadassah hospitals’ COVID-19 intensive care units, Hadassah specialists provided guidance on:
- ICU workflow and ventilation management
- Emergency room bottleneck reduction
- Logistics, staffing, and training models
- Home-based oxygen solutions to relieve hospital burden
The mission exemplified Hadassah’s role as a trusted medical advisor in moments of national crisis.
Latin America: Knowledge Transfer and Medical Collaboration
Hadassah hospitals delegations traveled to Argentina, engaging with senior leadership at leading hospitals, national health authorities, and medical academies.
Through lectures, workshops, and clinical discussions Hadassah hospitals experts shared experience in:
- Running COVID-19 intensive care units
- Managing complex and critical cases
- Nursing leadership in pandemic settings
- Hospital operations during prolonged emergency
These engagements resulted in formal collaboration agreements with major Argentine medical institutions and ongoing professional exchange.
In parallel, HADASSAH HOSPITALS specialists advised on emerging treatments and shared experience in the development and clinical evaluation of innovative COVID-19 therapies.
Global Sharing of Clinical Protocols
A cornerstone of Hadassah’s COVID-19 response was the development and international dissemination of the Hadassah Manual of Protocols for COVID-19—a comprehensive, evidence-based guide covering patient flow, treatment, safety, staffing, and hospital operations during the pandemic.
Coordinated by Hadassah International, the manual was:
- Presented to national health authorities and parliamentary health commissions
- Adopted by hospitals, nursing homes, and health systems across multiple countries
- Published in part in a peer-reviewed medical journal
The protocols were shared widely across Argentina, Peru, Paraguay, Chile, Mexico, and beyond, and distributed in English, Spanish, and Russian, reaching medical professionals in Europe, Latin America, Australia, and the United Kingdom.
Vaccination Strategy and Community Care
As vaccination efforts began, Hadassah experts also supported community institutions internationally.
At the request of Jewish communal leadership in Vienna, Hadassah hospitals immunology and nursing specialists delivered a detailed webinar on vaccination protocols, logistics, risk assessment, and patient safety—drawing on Hadassah’s experience vaccinating thousands without wasting a single dose.
This initiative reflected Hadassah International’s broader effort to connect Jewish communities worldwide with reliable, expert medical guidance during a time of fear and uncertainty.
A Lasting Contribution
Hadassah’s COVID-19 Global Crisis Response demonstrated the value of long-term investment in medical excellence and international partnership.
By enabling the Hadassah hospitals to share its expertise beyond Israel’s borders, Hadassah International helped strengthen healthcare responses, support medical professionals, and save lives in some of the most challenging conditions modern medicine has faced.
This model—local excellence, global responsibility—continues to guide Hadassah International’s approach to global health crises today.
