Shelter New Lives

Laniado needs to raise the funds to expand and fortify its maternity unit.

Laniado Hospital in Netanya within Israel’s Sharon region has been serving the over 500,00 residents for almost 50 years.

The Hospital was built as a life-affirming response to the devastation of the Holocaust. It is a testimony to the determination of one remarkable survivor, Rabbi Yekutiel Halberstam, also known as the ‘Klausenberger Rebbe’.  The Rebbe lost his wife, 11 children, and most of his devoted followers in the Holocaust. 

His vision was to rebuild that which he had seen destroyed. From the darkest depths, the Rebbe envisioned Laniado Hospital; a place where life is celebrated and suffering eased. On the 21 June 1976 30 years after this vision the Rebbe was able to celebrate the first birth of a baby in ‘his’ hospital. Today, the maternity unit handles over 8,000 births annually and ranks as one of the largest in Israel and continues to experience growing demand.

Despite its critical role, the current unit is only partially sheltered. This is a serious threat to life in light of the constant ongoing threat from missile attacks from Iran and Hezbollah. As a result, mothers and newborns have just 90 seconds to reach the sheltered corridor of the existing maternity unit. Just a few weeks ago, a missile attack from Hezbollah meant mothers who had just given birth wheeled their babies in cribs to a hallway in the sheltered area until the all-clear was given. This is a horrendous situation for our vulnerable patients and their families.

An expansion is urgently needed and underway to ensure the safety and security of mothers and babies, whilst accommodating the rising demand. This expansion will more than double the capacity of the exiting unit and provide vital improvements, including:

• 1,900 square meters of new space
• 25 rooms with 42 beds
• Dedicated doctors' wing with consultation rooms
• A spacious dining hall for patients and family members
• A specialised treatment room to free up surgical spaces for non-urgent procedures

Following the recent expansion of our delivery centre, this new development will enable us to support an additional 100 births each month.

Our aim is to secure the remaining £400,000 ($500,000) to finalise this critical expansion.

The mothers and babies have 90 seconds to get to safety…please use the next 90 seconds to donate towards this campaign.