PJ Beran

blog_pj PJ Beran
PJ is a young man from Sydney,
who volunteered for Magen David Adom
during his gap year as part of the
Maccabi Sports Leadership Program.
He writes here about his experiences ….

June 2013

BLOOD, SWEAT AND TEARS

The sympathetic symptoms of a patient suffering from hypovolemic shock due to an uncontrolled bleeding wound, or the signs of struggle felt by all MDA Overseas Youth Volunteers as we learnt and studied the in’s and out’s of Emergency Medical Response theory and practice? Well technically the answer could be both, but after just completing the intense 10 day, 60 hour, MDA training course and achieving our qualification as MDA First Responders, our assisting service to the ambulance drivers and paramedics of MDA begins now, and thus, so does our capacity to correctly diagnose and treat patients.

For me, the 10 day training course from the 20th of June to the 30th of June was a wonderfully unique experience. The program selectively brought together a group of young, active and intelligent people from all over the world (Canada, USA, Holland and Australia) to the holy land of Israel – future and ‘current’ doctors along with other civic-minded tertiary students made for a truly outstanding cohort.

I found the content taught to not only be very interesting and engaging, especially some of the big picture concepts concerning how to best identify and treat different emergency patients, but also, invaluable in terms of how to practically save someone’s life in the future – inside or outside of the ambulance.

Over and above recommending this course to any civic minded people who want some hands-on volunteering experience, if you are a student who has just graduated high school and is still trying to pave your tertiary pathway, or if you’re a current tertiary student with a medical background, I highly recommend MDA as a world-class source of education and experience.

The 6 week program (10 day training course and 4 weeks volunteering) runs all year round. To any prospective student or parent, make sure you visit or contact www.mdais.com/Volunteers for more information regarding the program details, costs and application process.

A special thanks must go to Reut, Avital, Itamar and Yair for their mateship, guidance and support throughout the rigorous training course. I am now very proud to be a part of the MDA family and I can’t wait to get the gloves on and start volunteering!

A total of 832,277 Patients and casualties were transferred to hospitals

MDA Operates 166 stations throughout Israel

MDA teams perform an Average of 500 resuscitations per month

MDA evacuated 74,865 wounded in road accidents, and 5,142 wounded from work-related accidents

232 babies were delivered in ambulances and at home assisted by MDA team members

There are 350 paramedics in the organization

On average, 1,745 operational callouts take place every day

In a public satisfaction survey conducted MDA came in 2nd place after the IDF on a list of security, emergency and rescue organizations with a score of 96%

According to the organization's statistics, the average response time for an ambulance and mobile intensive care unit is 8 minutes after the first call is received

In 2015, MDA celebrated its 85th anniversary

In a public satisfaction survey conducted MDA came in 2nd place after the IDF on a list of security, emergency and rescue organizations with a score of 96%

In 2015, MDA celebrated its 85th anniversary

MDA Employs 2,200 paid staff members and activates 22,000 volunteers, 12,000 of whom are teenagers

4,500 First Responder volunteers respond to an average of 488,8 calls a month I Volunteers invest over 1.5 million hours of service per year

The oldest volunteer is 90 years old & the youngest is 15

17,954 women in labor were transferred to hospital delivery rooms

There are 3 professionals in a Mobile Intensive Care Unit

A Life Support Ambulance A MICU team of 2 includes an Emergency Medical Technician and a paramedic

100,000 Israelis have downloaded the "My MDA" cellular App

20,000 Life Guardians are active across the country

110,000People underwent resuscitation courses

An intensive first aid and resuscitation course lasts 60 Hours

More than 470 foreign volunteers from 22 different countries were trained and volunteered in MDA stations

MDA trained 3,000 young parents in Infant and Child resuscitation

1,750 teenagers are given summer courses every year in infant and child resuscitation

750 teenagers are trained during courses to manage an MCI - Multi Casualty Incident

260,000 Blood Units were donated to MDA's Blood Bank | The MDA Blood Bank Services have 43 Blood Bank Mobiles

MDA dispatchers answer an emergency phone call in less than 4 seconds

The MDA emergency phone number is 101.

MDA deploys 379 MICUs (Mobile Intensive Care Units)

MDA deploys 715 ambulances

MDA deploys 63 of which are able to navigate through difficult routes and off-road conditions

MDA deploys 8 Dune Tractors (MULES) to evacuate victims from unconventional areas

MDA deploys 5 paramedic supervisor ALS vehicles, and 2 helicopters

MDA deploys 507 First responders on motorbikes

MDA deploys 50 armored ambulances are also deployed in friction and combat zones

There are 174 MDA ambulances stationed in Kibbutzim, Moshavim and Local Councils