Parental Counseling - ALYN in The Jerusalem Post
By Judy Siegel-Itzkovich
Israeli women typically undergo several ultrasound scans and other tests during pregnancy.
But what does one do if a problem is suspected in the fetus?
A new clinic has now opened at Jerusalem's ALYN Hospital, the national pediatric and adolescent rehabilitation center for children with serious physical disability due to genetic disease, accidents or other causes. The clinic will advise parents whose fetus is suspected
of suffering from heart defects, spina bifida, skeletal defects, muscular disorders, cleft palate (which can easily be treated with plastic surgery) and other problems.
Such parents will be able to consult with hospital director-general Dr. Maurit Be'eri or Dr. Eliezer Be'eri, the deputy director-general, social worker and Rabbi Zvi Porat, who specializes in matters of medicine and Halacha.
Parents who want to have the baby despite suspected disorders will be told what capabilities the baby will have despite disabilities and what treatments can be offered.
The ALYN director said she hoped the new clinic would relieve parents' fears and worries and help them cope.
