The 7500 residents of Yeruham, a new development township in the Negev east of Beersheba, went on a general strike several days ago to protest the lack of medical services. Until today, the town, which has several large industrial enterprises, had no doctor. When an infant died for lack of medical treatment, the angered citizens closed down their shops, schools and factories to call attention to their plight.
The army sent a medic for one night but a call for civilian doctors drew no volunteers until a former army surgeon working at the Beersheba Hospital offered his services. The doctor said he is familiar with the demographic structure of Yeruham’s population and was prepared to serve the town as a general practitioner although he is a qualified surgeon. He said he hoped other doctors would follow him to the desert settlement.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
