In honor of National Nurses Week and International Nurses Day in May, Hadassah On Call welcomes back Gila Zarbiv, a certified nurse-midwife at Hadassah Hospital Ein Kerem in Jerusalem, midwifery advocate, PhD candidate and mother of four. Zarbiv shares her vision for expanding midwifery’s role in Israel and worldwide.
She speaks candidly about the unique model of care midwives offer — from pregnancy to postpartum — and why she believes Israel must allow women greater access to midwives beyond the hospital.
“The women of Israel need to start asking, ‘Where is my midwife?’” she says.
Zarbiv also opens up about how October 7, 2023, and the rise in global antisemitism have impacted her personally and professionally. “The world had a moment to stand with women — regardless of politics — and it missed that opportunity,” she says.
Additionally, she speaks about the differences between birth in Israel and abroad, how consent in healthcare changed post-#MeToo movement, delivering Israel’s first COVID-positive birth and how midwives are a solution to the global maternal health crisis.
Zarbiv leaves listeners with this advice: “Find a midwife. Demand a midwife. And remember, everything’s going to be okay.”
Further learning:
- Check out Gila's previous appearance on Hadassah On Call
- Labor, Delivery & Me with Elisheva Levine & Dr. Lorinne Levitt
- Personalizing Maternity Care at Hadassah Mt. Scopus’ Rady Center
- Reversing the Odds with Technology and Expertise
- Hadassah Opens Clinic to Support Women Through Life Cycle Challenges
- Hadassah's Head of OBGYN: Pregnancy and Coronavirus
Hadassah On Call: New Frontiers in Medicine is a production of Hadassah, The Women's Zionist Organization of America. Hadassah enhances the health of people around the world through medical education, care and research innovations at the Hadassah Medical Organization. For more information on the latest advances in medicine, please head over to hadassah.org.
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The show is hosted by Maayan Hoffman and produced by the team at the Hadassah offices in New York and Israel.
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Our recent episode with Dr. Ariel Tenenbaum
If you are enjoying this episode, you’ll want to check out our previous episode with Dr. Ariel Tenenbaum, head of the pediatric department and director of the Down syndrome clinic at Hadassah Hospital Ein Kerem. Dr. Tenenbaum discusses what causes autism, if autism can be cured with medication, what being on the spectrum truly means and much more. You can find this episode of Hadassah On Call on Apple Podcasts, YouTube or wherever you get your podcast or on the web at hadassah.org/hadassahoncall.
Hadassah Magazine Presents Podcast
Jewish writers are under attack today. Thanks to the rampant antisemitism that’s seeped into the publishing world, more and more they’re being blacklisted and banned from publishing associations and literary events. Some publishers and agents are even refusing to read or consider anything by a Jewish author. But you can support these writers. It’s so easy to do — yet so important. Hadassah is elevating and celebrating them in the pages of Hadassah Magazine and in episodes of the Hadassah Magazine Presents podcast in which we interview female authors about their Jewish-themed books.
We encourage you to read their work and listen to our interviews. And join us as a member, to support Hadassah Magazine Presents and all we are doing for Jewish writers at this time of crisis. Go to hadassah.org/join.
