Israel has a shortage of doctors. The answer to the problem, it turns out, has been landing at Ben Gurion Airport for years—physicians immigrating to Israel who trained abroad and want nothing more than to practice medicine here. Until now, the path to doing that has been anything but simple.
(L–R) Mr. Ofir Sofer, Dr. Avi Weissman, Advocate Avichai Kahane, and Dr. Efrat Aflalo. Photography: Rambam HCC
This week, the Ministry of Aliyah (Immigration) and Integration, together with the Ministry of Health, announced the launch of the “Pathway to Medicine” program at Rambam Health Care Campus (Rambam) during a visit by Minister of Aliyah and Integration Ofir Sofer and Ministry Director-General Advocate Avichai Kahana. During the event, Minister Sofer and his representatives met with thirty immigrant physicians currently working toward Israeli licensure, as well as Rambam’s Deputy Directors, Dr. Avi Weissman and Professor Yael Shachor-Meyouhas.
The “Pathway to Medicine” is a comprehensive eight-month training program for immigrant physicians who trained outside Israel’s established “exempt” countries, such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, France, New Zealand, and South Africa, whose medical degrees are recognized for an accelerated licensing track. For physicians from non-exempt countries, the road to practicing in Israel depends on experience: Those with less than ten years of experience must pass a government licensing exam, while those with more than ten years must work under supervision for six months and then undergo a clinical evaluation. Navigating a new language, healthcare system, and professional culture, along with the stringent requirements can be daunting. The “Pathway to Medicine” program is built to prepare them for exactly that.
The program combines two tracks that immigrant physicians have often had to navigate on their own: professional preparation for the licensing exam and immersion in the language and culture of Israeli medical practice. Participants will study clinical Hebrew with an emphasis on the situations that matter most in daily hospital life—receiving a patient, communicating with a medical team, writing charts, and presenting a case in a clinical conference. They will also receive structured preparation for the licensing exam itself, alongside coursework in medical ethics and emergency management.
The program also goes beyond the classroom. Each participant will be matched with a senior physician mentor, and the cohort will take part in hospital tours, clinical case competitions, and lectures that connect medicine to the broader fabric of Israeli life. The goal is not just a passing the licensing exam, but also helping newly relocated physicians feel at home.
For Rambam, hosting the launch of this program reflects something the hospital has long believed: that a great medical center is built not only on technology and research, but on the people it attracts and the community it serves. A doctor who comes to Israel with years of experience and a deep desire to heal—and now has a clear path to licensure—is exactly the kind of physician who helps Rambam continue strengthening healthcare across Northern Israel.
Based on an original Hebrew article that first appeared on Israel Hayom.
