“I know it’s a hard place, but I think of it as the Garden of Eden,” says Yonatan Razel in describing the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at the Hadassah Medical Organization. “That’s because it’s full of angels doing their job, saving lives and projecting the optimism that makes all the difference for the families and patients.”
Five years ago, Razel’s daughter, Rivky, fell from a collapsed roof while watching the fireworks on Independence Day. She was then four-and-a-half years old. The staff in Hadassah’s PICU helped her survive her severe head injuries. Razel recalled the successful outcome at a fundraiser for Hadassah in Jerusalem.
At the time, the late Dr. Ido Yatsiv, an expert in head injuries, was head of the PICU. At the fundraiser, Dr. Yatsiv’s memory was honored with a tribute certificate presented to his widow, Gabi Yatsiv. Mr. Razel related what Dr. Yatsiv had said to him after the accident: “Well, we almost lost her, but now she’s back.”
Dr. Jacques Braun, the newly appointed head of the PICU and one of the doctors who helped care for Rivky, was also at the fundraiser. Mr. Razel noted: “I ran into Dr. Braun and his son once in the outdoor market. He asked his son if he knew who I was. I expected him to say, ‘Yonatan Razel, the singer.’ Instead, he said, ‘This is the father of Rivky, for whom we’ve been praying every day.’ That’s the extra element you have at Hadassah,” Mr. Razel related.
Rivky is now back in school, studying at her grade level.