Children’s hospital head says freed hostages in good physical health but face long recovery

Prof. Itai Pessach, head of the Edmond and Lily Safra Children’s Hospital at Sheba Medical Center reports that the overall physical health of the 13 freed hostages being treated there is good. All of them have undergone extensive physical and mental health evaluations and some have required medical treatment.

Pessach reports that the freed hostages — children and their mothers and grandmothers — have been cared for by top experts in various medical fields and psychosocial support. Some of the them are ready to be discharged, while others have chosen to stay longer at Sheba and take their time to readjust.

“Seeing the hostages reunited with their families and the fact that they are recovering physically gives a sense of optimism, but given their difficult, complex stories of captivity, they will have a long way to go until they are [fully] healed,” Pessach says.

Pessach says the hospital hopes all the hostages held in Gaza will be released as soon as possible, and that it is ready to receive them.