Israel's health figures after over 2 years of war: 24,000 hospitalized, half a million required mental health services

The Israeli Health Ministry published its conclusions on Wednesday following a review of its operations during the Oct. 7 war, including lessons drawn from the health system’s performance during the war and during Operation “Rising Lion.”

The report said that over the course of the war, approximately 24,000 were treated in hospitals, while the National Institute of Forensic Medicine identified and determined the circumstances of death of about 1,765 people, including those killed in the war and deceased hostages.

Approximately 435,000 people were treated at mental health clinics in 2025 – a 30% increase from 2022. Some 1,600 soldiers and victims of terror attacks were hospitalized for rehabilitation.

Key lessons cited by the review teams led by Prof. Arnon Afek included the need to:

• Establish the status and scope of a senior national hospitalization authority

• Ensure continuous 24/7 staffing of an operations center at the Health Ministry headquarters, even in peacetime

• Enhance the readiness of Magen David Adom and other first responders both in times of routine and emergency

• Increase medical stockpiles to levels sufficient for two months of sustained operations

As for the sensitive topic of providing medical care to terrorists, it was recommended to establish a formal procedure and standards, and to set up a dedicated facility in cooperation with the Prison Service and/or the Military Police, while allocating responsibilities between the relevant organizations.

The review teams also called for the establishment of a national clinical rehabilitation registry featuring an updated and continuous database; the creation of a coordinating body to direct patients to rehab based on bed availability and place of residence; and the adjustment of rehabilitation bed standards to evolving needs while expanding professional staffing across all rehabilitation fields.

The review teams noted the importance of diversifying how wounded soldiers are transferred from the battlefield to hospitals, making greater use of regional medical centers rather than relying solely on major hospitals. The report also found that IDF casualties received high-quality care during the war, supported by frontline treatment, swift evacuation, triage, and effective use of healthcare resources – with military figures indicating some of the lowest wartime mortality rates on record.

The ministry's data included the mortality rate of patients evacuated to hospitals on the first two days of war, October 7 and 8, 2023.

Of those evacuated on Oct. 7, the death rate was 0.6%, and on Oct. 8, it was 0.4%. Among critically injured patients evacuated on those two days, the mortality rates were 6.9% and 6.8%, respectively. These mortality rates are low by international standards, even though the scenarios for which the healthcare system had prepared were significantly more limited in scope than the scale of the attack.

According to the Health Ministry, the onset of the war coincided with shift changes at Soroka and Barzilai hospitals, where two shifts and reinforced teams were on duty simultaneously, enhancing response capabilities. In light of the number of casualties, secondary triage was activated, with roughly 150 patients transferred to hospitals in central Israel on the first day.

Regarding rising tensions with Iran, the director-general of the Health Ministry noted that in recent days, meetings have been held with the military and healthcare organizations to ensure continued readiness.

“The alert level in our system has not increased, but we are enhancing our preparedness, recognizing that we operate in a security environment that is constantly evolving.”