My name is Sam Polkinghorne-Katz, and I am a 22-year-old from Melbourne, Australia. I have just completed a Biomedical Science degree, and before moving onto to hopefully study medicine, I wanted to get real world experience in the sector. Hearing about what the MADA program entails, I felt like I had come across the closest thing to achieving real time scenarios in the health sector. I was right!!

Magen David Adom has been an incredible experience which I will cherish forever. Beginning from the 10-day course, the content learnt is applicable to the real world and you really feel like you are learning tools for life and not solely the ambulance. With volunteers from all over the world, you find yourself making friends with people from all continents. The bonds you make with your peers, as well as drivers and staff are a major bonus to the exceptional experience being on the ambulance.

Whilst volunteering you can apply in real life the skills taught in the course. I was based in Tel Aviv at the main station, and you are required to do 4-5
shifts per week over 5 weeks. Each shift involved something completely different, with a sporadic nature and always enabling you to feel like you are making a difference helping. I have been fortunate to assists patients with strokes, car accidents, severe bleeding, respiratory difficulties, broken bones, heart attacks as well as just general transportation.

Holistically MDA has been an experience of a lifetime and I couldn’t recommend it more to anywhere, not just the volunteering but also the dynamic of how the program is run and the people you meet along the way.