Breaking Update
Health Ministry to Update Doctor On-Call Rules
Israel's Health Ministry will update doctor on-call rules, reviewing a framework that aimed to shorten shifts for interns. The update seeks to balance workload.
About two years ago, a framework for shortening the Working Hours of female and male doctors on shifts was implemented, with the aim of alleviating the workload and improving the working conditions of interns in the periphery.
From the date of the framework’s actual implementation, the Ministry has been examining its implications with all relevant parties in the healthcare system, with an emphasis on the hospitals where it is being implemented. As part of the learning and lessons-learned process conducted by the Ministry, it emerged that the framework has value in alleviating the workload as expected. However, claims were also raised by some parties in the system regarding damage to the quality of training and care, the continuity of treatment, and the functioning of the departments where it applies, creating significant gaps in these areas between departments in the periphery and those in the Center. Therefore, the need arose for a thorough and continuous examination aimed at reviewing the framework and updating the work method, while maintaining the alleviation of the workload for interns, so that it can be applied to the entire inpatient system in due course.
The Director-General of the Ministry of Health, Moshe Bar Siman Tov, decided to establish a working team that will formulate an updated framework for doctor shifts. The team’s recommendations should address the aforementioned needs for both the medium and long term, taking into account the expected changes in the number of doctors in Israel in the coming years. The team will also formulate a recommendation for a sustainable systemic framework.
The team, expected to submit its recommendations by May 1, 2026, will be headed by the Director of Soroka Medical Center, Prof. Shlomi Kodish, and its work will be coordinated by Adv. Yael Israeli Nevo. During the team’s work, the positions of all relevant field and headquarters personnel will be heard.
Director-General of the Ministry of Health, Moshe Bar Siman Tov: “We see shortening shifts for interns as an important step for the benefit of male and female doctors, patients, and the entire system. In the past two years, the healthcare system has worked day and night, in emergencies and routine, to save lives and provide care for the many injured in body and soul. Now, as a learning system, we are working to examine the need to update the work method, and to create a balance that will protect the interests of caregivers and patients. We request to examine how the change has affected medical response in hospitals, while placing the well-being of the patient and doctors at the Center.
The long and exhausting working hours, 26 hours in a row, sometimes almost without a break, have not only harmed the intern doctors but could also harm the quality of medical care received by the public. The committee headed by Prof. Kodish will be required in the coming months to address this important issue, and I am confident that its findings and recommendations will assist us in formulating an updated framework.”
Dr. Sefi Mendlovic, Deputy Director-General of the Ministry of Health: “In recent months, we have thoroughly examined the framework for assessing the workload of interns. As part of the meetings we held and the extensive dialogue with the medical teams, we understood that adjustments are needed in the framework to ensure that working conditions are indeed improved and the level of training is maintained.
The next step we are taking now reflects the overall responsibility we have to create a comprehensive framework that can be implemented in the field and that aligns with the needs of interns and the entire healthcare system.”
Director-General of Soroka Medical Center, Prof. Shlomi Kodish, Head of the Working Team: “We see great importance in promoting the working conditions of interns in hospitals, especially during shift hours.
During the two years in which the framework for shortening the workday has been implemented, we have learned about the framework’s implications and its impact on team well-being and on systemic aspects of departmental activity.
Now we will examine the issues that have arisen, hear from those involved, and together formulate recommendations for the future, so that they will strengthen our healthcare system and ensure continued professional and high-quality medical care for patients and their families. This is while being committed to female and male doctors – for their welfare and their ability to fulfill their mission responsibly, professionally, and humanely.”
