Hadassah Medical Center is an Israeli medical organization that operates two university hospitals in Jerusalem, as well as schools of medicine, nursing, and pharmacology affiliated with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Its declared mission is to extend a "hand to all, without regard for race, religion, or ethnic origin."
Opened in 1961, the extensive campus of the Hadassah University Hospital–Ein Kerem has over 28 buildings. The Medical Center ranks as the sixth-largest hospital complex in Israel. Across its two campuses, Hadassah Medical Center has over 1,300 beds, 31 operating theaters, and nine special intensive care units, and runs five schools of medical professions.
This 800-bed tertiary care hospital deals with virtually every conceivable aspect of modern medicine and serves as a national referral center for complex and challenging medical cases. With over 130 departments and clinics, Hadassah Ein Kerem provides Israel's most advanced diagnostic and therapeutic services to the local and national population as well as a significant number of international patients.
Hadassah University Medical Center is Israel's only academic medical institution that combines teaching and training on one campus. Together with the Hebrew University, Hadassah provides an outstanding education and clinical experience.
In 2017, the bone marrow transplant department at Hadassah Ein Kerem successfully passed an audit on behalf of FACT JACIE—the international authority that supervises the accepted standards in bone marrow transplants and cell therapy. The examiners, who are senior bone marrow transplant specialists and department managers at the University Hospital in Basel, Switzerland, and the University Hospitals in Bristol and London, reviewed the Hadassah department in all areas of its activity: the clinical work, the meticulous procedures, and the infrastructure for complex treatments carried out in the department. In the audit summary, the examiners expressed satisfaction with the high quality of services that were presented to them. These included procedures in the medical, clinical, and nursing fields; adherence to quality procedures; procedures for the collection and processing of laboratory specimins; and transplant coordination. Prof. Stepensky said: "The preparation of the department for the audit process in order to receive the certification was complex and also required knowledge of regulations, writing skills, and the ability to produce quality presentations. For this purpose, we used the GSAP company, which specializes in regulatory, clinical, quality, and validation processes."
Hadassah has stated that the department is the first in Israel to undergo this full accreditation process on behalf of the JACIE. "Receiving the certification," it was noted , "puts the department at Hadassah in line with the best transplant centers in the world and will make it possible to bring to Israel innovative and advanced cellular treatments required for complex patients." Prof. Zev Rothstein, CEO of Hadassah, said: "The Bone Marrow Transplant Department at Hadassah is one of the leaders in Israel in this field, and experts from abroad request Prof. Stepensky's involvement in the treatment of complex patients and consult her in making life-saving decisions. Because of the capabilities and professionalism of the department, they have now received accreditation from the world-recognized body ."
