The Goodman’s Blog
Chapter 28
ALIYAH IN OUR 60’s
FROM ARLINGTON HTS, IL
TO CAESEREA, ISRAEL
(Part 28)
L TO R: HOWIE GOODMAN, SUZANNE GOODMAN, AND
BEVERLY GOODMAN TCHERNOV NEAR EILAT, ISRAEL
Howie and Suzanne
Goodman were valued
members at Beth Judea until
they decided to make aliyah
in 2009. The Goodmans
have agreed to provide us
with a blog on their
experiences as new olim in
Israel. Though we continue
to miss the Goodmans, we
can all look forward to
reading about their
adventures in Israel through
the blog.
Aliyah in Our 60’s – November 2014 - Part 28
SUZANNE’S ACCIDENT
Because of a bike accident our Rosh Hashanah & Yom Kippur holidays this year were very
different. It happened on a nice little Friday morning bike ride. Suzanne rode mostly on bike
paths for about 3 miles to Sdot Yam kibbutz. This is where our 2 year old grandson goes to
Gan or daycare. The Gan has a little playground next to it with old tires, sandbox, old farm
equipment, play stoves and other intriguing play things. The plan was maybe grandma could
catch the kids playing outside. However, the timing was off and on the way home to start
preparations for Shabbat dinner she had a bike accident. First a very nice man got out of his
car. He helped her get up off the busy street, checked her bike which had damage and offered
a ride home. She was close to home so called Howie to come pick her up. While she was
waiting another woman helped her into her car, gave cold water and chatted in English until
Howie came to transport the bike and her home.
After the accident happened, she could bend her leg but not put weight on it. Shabbat Dinner
at our house was cancelled and lots of ice was applied to her knee. Because It was Friday
afternoon, all regular medical facilities were closing for Shabbat. There was the question of
whether we should have a doctor make a house call, go to the hospital emergency room or go
to another outpatient medical facility in Haifa which is 30 miles away. Our past experiences
with going to the hospital emergency room were pretty horrendous, having a doctor come to
the house didn't seem too useful and going to a strange place in Haifa seemed too
challenging. So we continued with the ice treatments, postponed seeing a doctor until Yom
Rishon (Sunday) morning. Howie picked up sushi for dinner.
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ALIYAH IN OUR 60’s (continued from previous page)
The knee hurt but Suzanne could walk. Two days later, our general physician looked at it and
recommended seeing an orthopedic doctor. It was possible to see him at a nearby clinic in another
week. The appointment was his last at 9:30 on Sunday night. When you see a physician here
there is usually no receptionist or nurse. There is a list of times and appointments in Hebrew on
the physician's door. You need to find your name on the list and check with others waiting to
determine the order and your turn. The appointments are scheduled every ten minutes and we
could see that this doctor had already seen around thirty or forty patients. The table in his office
had standard paper cover. It had not been changed and was dirty. The doctor was Russian but
spoke English. He looked quickly at the slightly swollen and stiff knee, gave a prescription for anti
inflammatory medicine, and authorization for an x ray. The prescription was filled by a pharmacy in
the same mall before closing at ten o'clock.
The next morning we went to a facility that does x rays, ultra-sound, and mammograms. If you
need appointments, they can be made through the health care service to which we belong. You
can make them either online or by phone. When you call their main number it asks first in Hebrew,
then in Arabic, then Russian and then in English which number you should push for that language.
This facility is in Hadera. They are quite efficient and polite. There was no waiting, and they said
they would have the results to the doctor in an hour.
We went home and in an hour Howie checked online for the results. The x rays showed
irregularities and said to contact your orthopedic doctor. The doctor's nurse, Yulia, said Suzanne
should go to the emergency room at Hillel Yafee Hospital where they would put a "piqué" on the
knee. What is that? She was Russian and spoke a little English but didn't know how to translate.
She e -mailed the authorization, called " Tofus shevi esray" or form 17.
Reluctantly, we went to Hillel Yaffe emergency room. It is located in Hadera about 8 miles from our
home and we have been there a couple times before. One time, four years ago, was for stitches in
Suzanne's hand. Our Hebrew speaking daughter went along. The treatment went well but there
were questions regarding cleanliness in the operating room. The other time was via an ambulance
for Howie and that was a horror story. So we entered the emergency room check -in with
trepidation.
There was a thick glass separating people from the check -in clerks. She took the health card and
the online printout of the authorization for service and handed back a file. She gave no instructions
as to the next step. So we went past the security guard to some intimidating dark swinging doors.
This leads to a room with a big counter at one end and then curtained off partitions with people
waiting for treatment or being treated. Someone at the counter told us to go to the orthopedic
offices. All the signs are in Hebrew but we found a sort of waiting room where there were injured
people in wheelchairs or wearing slings. Someone was walking around who looked sort of like a
nurse and she was taking files. The file went in a pile on a desk in an adjoining room. We sat
down to begin waiting in a dark little alcove off the hallway.
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ALIYAH IN OUR 60’s (continued from previous page)
When Suzanne was called into the doctor's office, she explained in Hebrew that she didn't speak
Hebrew very well and asked if he could speak English. He was a young doctor and he told her, "I
can speak English all day". His parents were from New York and he had an Eastern accent. After
looking at the authorization, he said he had to x ray the knee. When questioned on the necessity of
another x ray, he said he didn't feel confidant treating without having his own set. GreatNow we
have to find the x ray department and wait some more. In Israel, the x-ray department is the word "
roentgen ". As most people know, it is the unit of measuring x-Ray dosage. That took about an hour
and then back to the orthopedic doctor. The doctor sees us and tells us that we will need to wait
because there are others more urgently needing treatment.
There seemed to be two doctors and our doctor was in and out of his office. This was because he
was doing "musical rooms" and going into another room to put various casts on people. He
returned to tell us Suzanne's patella was cracked and he would put her leg in a cast for 2 weeks.
He instructed Suzanne, "Go to that closet near the main ER and get some big baggy hospital pants,
put them on and meet me in the plaster room". We found the closet and a pile of clean folded
pants. After finding a closet to put on extra large cotton pants, we waited in a room that looked like
a messed up arts & crafts room. There was a gurney bed, some partition curtains and a pail with
water in it. The doctor came back joking and laughing with Howie as he ripped the leg of his wife's
hospital pants. Then he quickly proceeded to bandage and created the cast. He left and we didn't
see him again. We never found out his name.
The cast dried a bit and they rolled Suzanne to the x ray department.There was another fairly long
wait to get the x ray and to be rolled back to the "plaster room". Now if you can just put this all in a
setting with people crying, moaning and talking in about three or four languages! The attendant
rolled the patient to the wrong room and swirled the gurney table around a few times. She thought
she would throw up. Back in the plaster room we sat as the plaster dried. We waited until Howie
finally went to ask them, "Macka rah?" or what is happening? They told him that we were supposed
to get a release from the head surgeon. We don't know how we were supposed to know that. Just
like so many other things in this experience that we were supposed to magically know without
being told. Howie found the doctor in charge who signed the forms. A woman in scrubs told us in
Hebrew, that we didn't understand, what to do and then the doctor gave us written instructions, also
in Hebrew. With Suzanne in a wheelchair, we were stamped and released with orders to come
back in two weeks to the hospital out patient clinic.
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ALIYAH IN OUR 60’s (continued from previous page)
Howie got our car from the parking lot. It is a Chevrolet Optra which is a small car. First
Suzanne tried to put her right leg (in a cast) in the front passenger seat. That didn't work so
Suzanne wasmaneuvered into the back seat between the grandchild's car seat and the front
seat. The grand child's car seat could have been removed first but we were trying to move
the car from the single lane also used for ambulances. As we were trying to do this trick as
quickly as possible, there was someone else in the single car drive honking at us. Luckily, it
was a short drive home where the next challenge was how to get to the second floor
bedroom.
Next morning as Suzanne stayed on the second floor, Howie made a trip to the synagogue
in Netanya for final Rosh Shanah preparations. There is a Yad Sara agency there almost
next to the synagogue which provides medical supplies such as wheelchairs, crutches, etc. It
is a wonderful organization that works through volunteers and donations. They provide
equipment free of charge. Two weeks on crutches really put a kibosh on holiday
preparations & celebrations. However, after two weeks in the cast the fracture is healed and
the next step is physical therapy to complete the treatment.
It was not an enjoyable experience to be treated in a hospital emergency room in Israel.
Maybe it isn't too much fun anywhere. However, they do seem to give good care. It is an
understatement to say there are no frills to medical care here. They are trying to operate as
efficiently as possible with minimal funds and staff. Of course, the treatment seems to have
worked so that is the true test. The whole treatment time in the hospital was around five
hours. There were no forms to fill out as it is all in the system. If there hadn't been doctor
authorization for treatment we may have had to pay or/and get reimbursed which is kind of a
hassle. There were no questions about having health insurance and there will be no endless
mailing of statements as there can be in the states. There are no deductibles or any of the
bookkeeping of coverage. We are treated and there is no trail of bills. We belong to a health
care system that is automatically billed on our bank statement. The cost is less than one
hundred dollars a month. The down side is that we have not given up Medicare and
supplementary insurance in the states. So we are double paying for insurance because we
don't want to risk losing coverage in the states. The key to survival is to take care of your
health, not have bike accidents and stay out of hospitals!
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ALIYAH IN OUR 60’s (continued from previous page)
The Holidays
Bet Israel High Holiday Services were very nice. However, because of Suzanne's full length
leg cast, she couldn't attend. We probably have not been at High Holiday Services together
only a couple of times in 48 years. Once in October of 1970, Howie was in Vietnam. The
other time was in late September of 2006 when Howie had just had emergency heart bi-pass
surgery.
Our synagogue, Bet Israel, in Netanya had Liel and Aitan Birnbaum as our lay leaders. They
are sons of Rabbi Ervin Birnbaum, our 86 year old Rabbi Emeritus. The three of them
combined on some portions of the service.
Rabbi Birnbaum's other son, Dani, as mentioned before, is CEO of Soda Stream. They have
a plant in the West Bank, have Palestinian managers, and workers, but are taking
increasing pressure to leave the West Bank. The Palestinians make almost five times they
would be paid elsewhere. Soda Stream has now opened a new facility in the south, in Israel,
with Bedouin workers. Dani, for the High Holidays, is the guest Hazzan at Adath Israel in
Cincinnati. He worked at P&G many years ago and belonged to that shul. He has returned
there every year since returning to Israel.
One of our members, also, was the guest Hazzan at Temple Beth El in Birmingham,
Alabama.
After Kol Nidre we were informed that two Lone Soldiers were attending our services. We
have no tickets and allow anyone to attend. Howie talked to them after services Friday night.
Aiton was from Seattle and his girlfriend, Ruth, was from White Plains, NY. The State of
Israel had offered free trips to Israel for the parents of Lone Soldiers for the High Holidays.
Aiton's Abba was there. Aiton is stationed in The West Bank and Ruth is stationed in Eilat
where she guards the Egyptian border.Saturday they returned and Howie gave them his
Alyiah. They were introduced as they approached the Bima.
Later in the early afternoon service regarding martyrdom, Aiton Birnbaum remembered ten of
the soldiers killed in Operation Protective Edge". He picked out soldiers that lived close to
Netanya. Aiton mentioned some of the Lone Soldiers as part of the ten. By the time he came
to the tenth fallen soldier story, Aiton said he couldn't finish. Someone else finished the last
fallen soldier's story. There wasn't a dry eye in the sanctuary. It was incredibly moving. Most
people who are members of Bet Israel have had children and now grandchildren in the
military. At the funeral of Lone Soldier Max Steinberg, thirty thousand Israelis attended. A
note was found at his grave and it said, in Hebrew, "There are no Lone Soldiers in Israel".
The "You Tube" of his funeral was in our last newsletter.
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ALIYAH IN OUR 60’s (continued from previous page)
We have our sukkah built and hope to see the Beth Judea Israeli group in late October.
There is a new app called "am Israel Buy" . It gives you information on products made in
Israel to offset the BDS attempts.
Lulav and etrog being sold in a super market in Or Akiva.
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ALIYAH IN OUR 60’s (continued from previous page)
Below is a picture taken at Tishbi Winery in Binyamina for Howie's 70th birthday!
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ALIYAH IN OUR 60’s (continued from previous page)
Home sukkah with Beverly, Tomer - Dani's oldest son, Erez- straight back, and Alon- in high chair
We hope you enjoy the twentyseventh installment from the
Goodmans, who have graciously
agreed to blog for our
congregation their experiences as
Olim in Israel. If there are
specific topics that you are
interested in hearing about of if
you just want to stay in touch
with Howie and Suzanne, you can
reach them
at: [email protected]
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