{"title":"The multifaceted impact of volunteering in an Israeli neurosurgery department following the October 7th terror attacks.","authors":"Gabriella Vulakh, Jonathan Roth, Sigal Freedman","doi":"10.1186/s13584-025-00717-0","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The paper examines the experiences of volunteers, residents, and leadership in Tel Aviv Medical Center's (TLVMC) Neurosurgery Department following the October 7th terrorist attacks. It explores how volunteers impacted the department's operations during acute medical staff shortages, a surge in patient needs, and a time of profound national and personal crisis.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Fifteen semi-structured interviews were conducted with volunteers, residents, and management members in TLVMC's Neurosurgery Department to provide a qualitative analysis of their experiences and insights for future disaster preparedness. The findings are analyzed using three theoretical frameworks: Surge Capacity Framework, Resilience Theory, and Volunteer Process Model.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Participants reflected on the overall impact of volunteers in the department - helping to maintain the service's functionality and operations, filling gaps in staffing, and providing relief and support to staff members - as well as the non-medical contributions such as increasing morale and a sense of solidarity within the community. Volunteers also spoke about the personal impact of this experience, expressing their desire to give back and have a sense of purpose. Participants emphasized the importance of strong leadership, cohesive teams, and the need for pre-disaster planning.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Volunteers provided essential clinical and morale support. They reported meaningful personal experiences and also offered practical recommendations for future disaster volunteering. Embedding community-wide planning and formal volunteer integration can strengthen healthcare system resilience.</p>","PeriodicalId":46694,"journal":{"name":"Israel Journal of Health Policy Research","volume":"14 1","pages":"59"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2000,"publicationDate":"2025-10-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12492893/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Israel Journal of Health Policy Research","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s13584-025-00717-0","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"HEALTH POLICY & SERVICES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background: The paper examines the experiences of volunteers, residents, and leadership in Tel Aviv Medical Center's (TLVMC) Neurosurgery Department following the October 7th terrorist attacks. It explores how volunteers impacted the department's operations during acute medical staff shortages, a surge in patient needs, and a time of profound national and personal crisis.
Methods: Fifteen semi-structured interviews were conducted with volunteers, residents, and management members in TLVMC's Neurosurgery Department to provide a qualitative analysis of their experiences and insights for future disaster preparedness. The findings are analyzed using three theoretical frameworks: Surge Capacity Framework, Resilience Theory, and Volunteer Process Model.
Results: Participants reflected on the overall impact of volunteers in the department - helping to maintain the service's functionality and operations, filling gaps in staffing, and providing relief and support to staff members - as well as the non-medical contributions such as increasing morale and a sense of solidarity within the community. Volunteers also spoke about the personal impact of this experience, expressing their desire to give back and have a sense of purpose. Participants emphasized the importance of strong leadership, cohesive teams, and the need for pre-disaster planning.
Conclusions: Volunteers provided essential clinical and morale support. They reported meaningful personal experiences and also offered practical recommendations for future disaster volunteering. Embedding community-wide planning and formal volunteer integration can strengthen healthcare system resilience.