ADI 4 U, a community project of ADI Jerusalem offering services, support and information to families of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, once again took the limelight, hosting a high-level international ZOOM conference on the topic of Ethics, Medicine and Disability.
Over 100 people tuned in to the virtual conference on Sunday, March 7, dedicating five hours to the eclectic program, simultaneously translated into three languages: Hebrew, Arabic and English.
The Honorable Mr. Hans Docter, Dutch Ambassador to Israel, Major-Gen. (res.) Doron Almog, chair of ADI Negev-Nahalat Eran and Shulamit Grayevski, CEO of ADI Jerusalem graced the conference with opening words and greetings, after which guest lecturers raised complex and thought-provoking issues faced by medical professionals and parents when ethical and medical considerations encounter the reality of disabilities.
Professor Michael Schimmel, head of the Well-Baby Clinic for Post-NICU Children at Shaare Zedek Medical Center shared challenges from the realm of bio-ethical decisions facing neonatal physicians, after which Rabbi Dr. Benny Lau and Emir Palach Uda presented Judaic and Islamic positions regarding the value of life and the lives of people with disabilities as brought down in religious sources and exemplified in modern society.
Ms. Odelia Fitoussi, Israeli representative at the UN Panel for Persons with Disabilities provided first-hand impressions of the need for equality and equality of opportunity and Professor Yoram Yuval, psychiatrist, brain-science scholar and psychoanalyst spoke of the foundations of fear and how to cope with ongoing stressful situations.
A virtual round-table of discussions enabled participants to meet lecturers and ADI staff and ย delve into points raised during the various lectures, offering a fitting conclusion to a well-planned and fastidiously organized event.
Congratulations to Projects Coordinator Moriya Globerman-Kestenbaum and Miri Aricha, Director of ADI 4 U, for yet another inspiring, informative and thought-provoking event.
