Sheba Transforms Parking Garage into a Fortified Underground Hospital Amidst Operation “Roaring Lion”
Hundreds of medical and support personnel sprang into action the minute the Ministry of Health and IDF Homefront Command alerted Sheba to move patients underground—showing exactly why Newsweek/Statista ranked Sheba as the 7th “World’s Best Hospital” last week (rising from #8).
Close to 50 divisions shifted patients to four pre-designated underground locations within 36 hours, staff operating like a well-oiled machine as infrastructure teams upgraded electrical flow throughout.
A Fortified Safe Care Environment
Yoel Har-Even, Vice President of Sheba’s Global Affairs, detailed in an interview by Reuters, the rapid departmental relocations, pointing to the emergency department where all cases are now treated, and opposite it, the neurological and neurosurgery departments treating 52 patients. He urgently explained the existential threat from missile warheads carrying up to 1,000 kilos of explosives that no surface building could withstand: “…The decision was made to bring all patients, which means 2,000 beds that Sheba has, underground — to a safe and sheltered place.”
Head of Maternal Fetal Medicine, Dr. Michal Fishel Bartal, also shared in the same interview how a simple parking garage became a fully equipped birthing center after the morning alarms:
“Nothing was here yesterday. Yesterday around 8:00 a.m. when we got the alarms things started.”
This transformation extended throughout the underground hospital, which features 10 labor and delivery rooms including three for induction and an OR for cesarean deliveries, replicating everything from upstairs. Bartal added, “We feel safe working here right now and the most important part is that our patients feel safe coming down.”
Regional Collaboration Under Fire
In addition to supporting their own patients and staff, Sheba lent a helping hand to nearby Wolfson Medical Center, which lacks enough protected spaces for patients. Nearly 100 patients were transported to Sheba from Wolfson to continue their medical care with Wolfson doctors on site, working side by side with Sheba personnel.
Dozens of reporters from around the world also descended upon Sheba to highlight this unique life-saving environment, while teams maintained seamless operations.
Sheba’s Unbreakable Medical Spirit
Sheba’s underground “City of Health” proves how medicine’s unbreakable spirit endures under missile threat. Even in the darkest of times, Sheba safeguards patients through preparation, rapid execution, and unwavering commitment to care, ensuring humanity prevails, no matter what.
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