It’s hard to imagine that just 15 years ago, cardiac patients receiving inpatient hospital treatment for acute cardiac episodes did not always have testing resources readily available. Echochardiograms, stress tests, angiograms – all were limited resources in Israel,
and only the most urgent of cases received immediate attention.
Enter Dr. Morton Leibowitz, renowned cardiologist of New York University Hospital on sabbatical in 1991 at Kfar Saba’s Meir Hospital Cardiac Unit. Dr. Leibowitz was tasked with prioritizing requests for cardiac services based on the severity of each case. Not an easy job for a top-notch, upper-east side cardiologist who bore witness to advanced cardiac medical care in the United States.
According to Professor Morton Leibowitz, founder of the Israel Heart Fund, this experience paved the way to the founding of the US and Israel based nonprofit called the Israel Heart Fund (Yad Lalev), which undertook the shift of focus from cardiac crisis intervention to one of cardiac rehabilitation and prevention.
Dr. Leibowtiz recalled: “During this time I witnessed a disproportionate number of cardiac patients returning to the hospital just 3-6 months after their first hospitalization. it was obvious to me that they weren’t receiving adequate follow-up care. This resulted in another critical cardiac episode that could have been prevented.”
The Israel Heart fund is a nonprofit organization in both Israel and the United States dedicated to the prevention and reduction of cardiovascular disease the leading cause of death and disability in Israel.
IHF initiates and supports research and development of programs that address risk factor management for both the general public and for high-risk populations. With an approach that is both innovative and caring, IHF collaborates with other health organization by providing critical funding, scientific expertise, and resources for advocacy.
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