Exclusive: Jewish EMT Saves Young Bedouin Girl
After a girl lapsed into unconsciousness in Abu Queider, a Jewish EMT from Dimona rushed to save her life
Dimona – At approximately 5:30 p.m. on Sunday evening last week, a young girl, 3-years of age, was playing in her home in the Bedouin town of Abu Queider when she fell and hit her head causing her to lose consciousness. The girl had seemingly suffered a concussion. Her parents immediately called emergency services for help, picked up their daughter, and drove her out of the community to bring her to a more accessible location for a first responder to easily pinpoint them and treat the girl without delay.
United Hatzalah volunteer EMT Yosef Asor was driving down Road 25 on his way home to Dimona when he was located by the Dispatch and Command Center as the nearest EMT to the emergency. He flicked on his lights and sirens and rushed to the Abu Queider intersection where he waited for just a minute until the family arrived by his side with their unconscious daughter in the backseat of the car.
Yosef quickly helped them bring the young girl out of the car to assess her condition. The 3-year-old was physically unscathed, however, she was in a state of semi-consciousness with her eyes closed as if she were asleep. When the worried parents tried to communicate with their daughter, she briefly responded by fluttering her eyes open then inadvertently closing immediately afterward.
The experienced EMT diagnosed that the girl had suffered a serious head injury which had put her into a state of deep shock that could result in full unconsciousness if she were to doze off. Yosef took out his oxygen tank and placed a non-rebreather mask over the girl’s mouth and nose to provide high-flow oxygen to the faint girl. He monitored her situation and spoke to her the entire time in order to make sure that she stayed awake. He also stabilized the position of her spine so that she would not suffer a spinal injury while they waited for the ambulance to rush into view.
After stabilizing the girl, Yosef maintained her condition for 10 minutes until the ambulance finally arrived and transported her to the nearest medical center for further care. He realized that although only a few minutes had passed, it felt like he had been there for so much longer.
“Sitting at the 3-year-old’s side waiting for the ambulance to pull up was a stressful situation because at any moment her condition could deteriorate,” Yosef said. “I tried my best to prevent that from happening by providing her with a steady stream of oxygen to keep her going those long minutes until the ambulance arrived. I am incredibly thankful to United Hatzalah for equipping me with the supply because it was vital in saving the life of the little girl.”
