First, and most importantly, the medical care she received
there was excellent (especially from one of
the nurses), thorough and fairly fast for an emergency room. She was diagnosed
with something not contagious, but that for sure required ER care, and we made our
flight to Chicago.
However, the hospital experience was the most bizarre I have
ever experienced in Israel. I have been to five medical facilities in Jerusalem,
Tel Aviv and Be'er Sheva. Laniado was my sixth in this country. When we pulled up
to the hospital, the parking lots were gated off. When we asked a security
guard to open the gate, he gave us a hard time: “It’s Shabbat,” he said. My mother in law told him that we have a sick
little baby, and he relented after a bit of back and forth. However, he said
to drop her off, and then park blocks away from the hospital. When we entered
the hospital, I was taken (my mother in law came with me) to a back room with
my daughter. The intake person (who was also lovely) handed me a cell phone. There was an unidentified man on
the line that said, “Listen, it’s Shabbat. No (pediatricians) are around. Can you come back tomorrow?”
Clearly, I wouldn’t have come to an emergency room if I
could have come back tomorrow, but I explained my situation, and he said,
“Well, can you wait around until Shabbat ends so you can pay your bill.”
I told him I didn’t understand what he was asking – although
I did because I wanted him to actually say it: They didn't really want me receiving care on Shabbat, but if my daughter really needed care, they didn’t want payment on
Shabbat, but they didn’t want me skipping payment. There is a clear sign at the admissions' window that says how much
tourists and residents must pay for an ER visit. (My daughter and I are not citizens of
Israel). I said he could have my place of employment, my address, my passport
number, and that I would for sure not forget to pay my bill. My mother in law also offered her address and
passport number. He argued with me some more (by the way, I still have no clue
who this was) and then again relented.
While we were in the waiting room, I called my husband to
give him an update. A different security guard scolded me me, “No cell phones;
it’s Shabbat.” My father in law wanted
to entertain my daughter with a little video on his cell phone. Again, a
security guard looked over and said, “No cell phones; it’s Shabbat.”
This is the video my father in law wanted to show my daughter.
Because of all of the tests my daughter needed, by the time
we left, Shabbat was over and we could pay our bill and be on our way. But regardless, here are my questions:
1.
Why is an Emergency Room open on Shabbat if they
do not want people to come there on Shabbat?
2. Is this kind of Sabbath intimidation legal? It’s the hospital’s right, I guess, to close off its parking lot, but do the security guards have the right to demand that I not talk on my cell phone because of the Sabbath? (It’s not a rule because cell phone use is annoying; it’s a rule because it’s a “commandment.” Do they have the right to not let us drop off the baby at the front of the hospital?
2. Is this kind of Sabbath intimidation legal? It’s the hospital’s right, I guess, to close off its parking lot, but do the security guards have the right to demand that I not talk on my cell phone because of the Sabbath? (It’s not a rule because cell phone use is annoying; it’s a rule because it’s a “commandment.” Do they have the right to not let us drop off the baby at the front of the hospital?
I ask these questions for two
reasons:
a.
I have friends who live in this area (Even Yehudah) who are not
Jewish, and would not understand the hospital’s behavior and be really put off by it Despite the good
medical care, I would probably steer them clear of it, unless this was an
anomaly.
b.
What are
my rights in a situation like these, besides to go to a hospital in Tel Aviv if
we, and I hope we don’t, need an ER again?
Looking forward to your responses.
