‘So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and
help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.’ (Isaiah 41:10)
Dear Friends and Supporters of the Nazareth Trust,
Thank you for your prayers and messages of concern for the Nazareth Trust at this time of
heightened tension and conflict in our region. We are deeply grateful for your many expressions of
support for our staff and their families, and for all those who use our services.
We give thanks to God that despite the recent escalation, and rockets being intercepted over
Nazareth and the surrounding area, that we have not had any injuries or significant damage to
the property in Nazareth or the facilities of the Nazareth Trust. Minor damage (shattering of the
glass ceiling) was caused by a missile fragment that hit the Hospitals’ ER entrance, which was dealt
with quickly without affecting the ongoing operation of the hospital.
We ask for prayer to thank God for His protection of the Trust’s staff and facilities until now and to ask for His continuous protection for the Trust.
Following are the main updates during this challenging period:
The EMMS Nazareth Hospital
All the operations of the Hospital have moved to protected areas as authorised by the HFC to
ensure the safety of our staff and patients. This means the reduction of hospital operations by
approximately 50%, focusing on only treating urgent or critical cases and with almost full stoppage
of elective activities. The dialysis unit was moved to a new sheltered area in the Doshi Centre in
Nazareth, which the hospital leases and prepares for times of emergency, such as now. In this unit
we also host dialysis patients from the other community clinics that have no sheltered area. These
adjustments have had a significant impact on the Trust finances. The aforementioned changes
have significant effect on the Trusts’ income and expenditure and we have contacted the Ministry
of Health to compensate us for these unexpected losses.
We ask for prayer while negotiating fair compensation from the Israeli Ministry of Health.
As we have full occupancy of the protected admission beds, we are looking to increase our
protected admission capacity. This is a crucial and urgent need as we enter the winter season and
with the war expanding in the north. Both are anticipated to result in high levels of urgent
admissions. We have identified a protected shell of around 500 sqm which is meant to serve for
storage, and which could be adjusted to serve as a temporary protected admission ward providing
an additional 40-50 urgent admission beds. This will double the number of the protected
admission beds in the hospital and provide regional relief upon the increased need for urgent
admissions.
As the shell is already built, the completion costs of the building, including electricity, air
conditioning, fire protection, kitchen and toilet facilities, are estimated at approx. US$ 1.5m. We
will be approaching donors and the Israeli Ministry of Health to obtain funds, enabling us to
progress with this very important project.
We ask for prayer for a successful campaign to fundraise for this significant and lifesaving project.
The EMMS Nazareth Academic School of Nursing (NASN)
We are continuing to provide tuition to our 300 BA conversion students by remote means due to
the current restrictions on indoor gatherings, and plan to launch our new BA Nursing Degree
programme in November.
We ask for prayer for a successful launch of the BA programme and full enrolment of
students.
Please give thanks for completion of the additional two floors and pray for a successful
completion of the equipping and furnishing process. Also, for resilience and protection of all the staff and students and their families and mainly for Dr Salam, the Director of NASN, and her family, who live in Israel’s Northern region.
The Nazareth Village
The Nazareth Village is temporarily closed due to the lack of secure structures for shelter in the
event of a siren alarm. The village is hosting special programmes with local churches and the
community, as the HFC restrictions enables. The village is also preparing for a special programme
for the local community: – ” the Olive Festival” during October and November.
Please continue to pray for the staff and their families at this challenging time and for peace and the return of tourism and for a successful and safe local programme. Please also give thanks for the contributions received, enabling recruiting back staff members and the strengthening of local community engagement.
SERVE Nazareth
The Serve activities remain ceased due to the situation. The Programme Coordinator is assisting
the other entities of the Trust and at the same time is ensuring the Serve facilities are in good shape,
ready to welcome volunteers once circumstances will allow.
Please continue to pray for end of the war and for the full return of volunteers and the SERVE Nazareth Programme.
Pastoral Care Team (PCT)
Especially in these challenging times, the PCT continues to offer spiritual support and comfort to
our staff and patients amid the heightened anxiety and fear created by the war. The PCT is leading
special activities during the Spiritual Care week, including special lectures, prayer services,
departmental gathering and more.
The PCT, supported by all the Trust’s arms, held a successful Children’s camp with 60 of the
children of staff of the Trust staff, participating and enjoying their time and studying the word of
God.
Please give thanks to God for His protection and the success of the children’s camp and pray for the continuation and expansion of our spiritual care.
Above all, please join our prayer for an end to the war in this region and for sustainable peace to be achieved, to enable all those who have been so painfully affected by this war to be able to rebuild their lives and livelihoods and to find healing for themselves and their families.
With our heartfelt thanks for your prayers and support for the Nazareth Trust at this testing time.
Waseem Dibbini
Acting CEO
