A Solution for Every Challenge

October 5, 2023

Sheba supports no just one, but two remarkable organizations working to improve quality of life for people with disabilities.

Milbat was established in 1981 as a nonprofit by the head of the Rehabilitation Hospital at Sheba and an engineer from the Weitzman Institute. Their vision was to improve the quality of life of people with disabilities by creating physical solutions to specific challenges. They have a team of developers (or “Makers”) that includes about 80 volunteers from the engineering professions – planning, development, production, electronics, electricity, 3D printing, sewing, and design, who dedicate their time to helping and assisting the disabled from all over the country, with all types of needs. They design and build custom solutions like this control panel for an induction stove for a blind client or creating a computer stand suitable for the wheelchairs of children and adolescents, enabling them to communicate throughout the day.

They do this for almost 500 people annually, ranging from children to seniors to disabled IDF veterans. To leverage Milbat’s extensive experience and knowledge, in 2020 it was officially incorporated into Sheba Medical Center, and today provides services for both Sheba’s patients and the wider disabled population throughout Israel.

Boaz Hochstein, 31, was born in Jerusalem in 1992, but according to his “Ptzihuledet” – injury birthday – he is only 9 years old. Wounded a decade ago during Operation Protective Edge, the Restart COO shares his emotional journey and how Makers for Heroes, that was initiated at Sheba Medical Center, utilizes innovative tech to break boundaries for wounded vets: “I was blown out of the tank and almost lost my arm,” Hochstein recounts, noting that he was conscious the whole time. “Thankfully, the surgeons at Sheba were able to reattach and rebuild it.” Hochstein was hospitalized at Sheba for a full year during his rehabilitation (then returned twice a week for rehab for the next 2.5 years). Early on in his treatment, Sheba cleared out the civilian patients from a rehabilitation ward and filled it with wounded Protective Edge soldiers. “It became an instant giant support group,” Hochstein recalls. “All 150 of us wounded soldiers grew very close to one another – and we still are – and our numbers keep growing.”

Hochstein is now the COO of Restart Global, a non-profit organization helping wounded soldiers from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) restart their lives after physical and/or emotional trauma resulting from their mandatory service or reserve duty.

How fitting that his vision was launched from within Sheba and Sheba continues to play a key role in his organization.

Sheba’s commitment to rehabilitation and allowing everyone to live the fullest life possible, is deep in the Medical Center’s DNA.

Brian