As part of the initiative, the Jerusalem Municipality calls on the city's synagogue gabbaim to apply for the program on the Jerusalem municipal website or contact the community administrations.
The project is the result of a joint initiative by Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion and MDA Director-General Eli Bin which aims to equip all the synagogues in the city with defibrillators before the High Holidays and the Tishrei holidays, which are characterized by large crowds gathering in synagogues for prayers.
The defibrillators in question are automatic - meaning that they can be operated easily and independently, with no need for previous medical training - and are intended to save lives in the event of a heart attack, to help stabilize the patient until emergency crews arrive.
The project was made possible by donations from the Friendship Foundation, Cross River Bank, who were recruited by the MDA Friends Association, and other donors solicited by the Jerusalem Municipality and the MDA Friends Association in Israel.
The municipality and MDA stated that this is the first large-scale operation of its kind in Israel, and that it is very large in terms of the number of devices that will be installed in synagogues.
In the statment, Mayor Lion said that "Installing defibrillator devices in synagogues will make the synagogue a safer place. The devices will provide an immediate and life-saving response when needed, not only to synagogue worshipers, but also to residents of the area."
MDA Director General Eli Bin said that "In recent years, MDA has been working resolutely to make defibrillators accessible to citizens in public areas of the State of Israel, a move which has been proven to increase the chances of those suffering from cardiac arrest outside the hospital walls to survive without damage."
"The hundreds of devices that will be placed in the synagogues join the thousands of devices we have already placed in the public sphere and will help save lives every day. I want to thank the donors and our partners in the Jerusalem Municipality with which we can save the lives of many faster and better."