A hospital nearby could have saved her father

Years before Assuta Ashdod Hospital opened, a seven-year-old girl named Lucy lost her father. He died at the young age of 42 after suffering from a massive heart attack. There was no ambulance available, and during the critical time when every second counted, he and his wife were forced to drive 40 minutes to the nearest hospital. During those 40 minutes, he went from concerned to critical, collapsing in the emergency room at the hospital, miles away from home. He never regained consciousness and died two weeks later. While no one can predict the future, it is clear that if there had been a hospital in Ashdod--as there is now--Lucy’s father would have received immediate treatment. It is more than likely that he would have survived. Sadly, this was not an isolated case: there are many families like Lucy’s, who paid the very high price of not having a hospital in the region. As a young adult, Lucy promised herself that if ever a hospital were to be built in Ashdod, she would find a way to secure employment within its walls. When she heard about Assuta Ashdod, it became her mission to “close the circle” in memory of her father. Lucy works today as a valued member of staff at Assuta Ashdod Hospital. “After I was hired, I went to the cemetery to tell my father the good news," Lucy said. “He would have been so proud of me, and grateful to know that I was a part of making sure that what happened to him would not happen to anyone else,” she continued. “We all need to say ‘thank you’ to those who kept pushing for a hospital here. It simply saves lives in the city and in the region.”