To an outside observer, it seems almost strange. An event in the heart of New Jersey with hundreds of visitors, citizens of the United States, interested in relocation. And not just any move, but to a country at war on seven fronts, some highly active and others hidden from view, simmering beneath the surface.
"After October 7, I decided I wanted to be with my people," is a common phrase repeated when approaching potential immigrants about why Israel has become a destination for them, especially now.
Nefesh B'Nefesh organizes together with the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, Ministry of Health, and additional partners, the MedEx immigration fair for families and individuals day after day. This transforms a lengthy bureaucratic process into a quick experience with several stations in one hotel. While outside, anti-Israel protesters remind us that antisemitic persecution is not concentrated within Israel's borders but extends far beyond them.
At this event, which takes place annually, I met not only Jewish American citizens interested in immigrating to Israel but also those who want to specifically move to the Gaza border communities and the north, seeing it as a mission. While they circulate among the booths of hospitals and health maintenance organizations from Israel to explore job opportunities, I also meet Professor Salman Zarka, manager of Ziv Hospital in Safed, who came to the conference for the second consecutive year, this time to recruit a thoracic surgeon.
"The ratio of doctors in the north is the lowest in the country"
When I wonder if any of the immigrants expressed interest in Ziv Hospital, he responds: "They see things differently than Tel Avivians. What the north can offer is impact – influence, because proportionally the ratio of doctors in the north is the lowest in the country, so sometimes you arrive and you're the first doctor in your field."
Professor Zarka clarifies: "It's not just Zionism – as mentioned, you're looking for influence. Doctors in their 50s who already have established careers, what speaks to them and influences them is the desire to come and create change. I also have doctors in Israel who 'immigrated' from the 'State of Tel Aviv' to Safed," he says with a half-smile.
Ziv Hospital, which bore the burden of treating soldiers when the northern front was active, treated 1,330 wounded, some from the two most memorable and difficult events: the ground entry into Lebanon on the eve of Rosh Hashanah when large numbers of soldiers were wounded, and the missile strike on the children's playground in Majdal Shams. "The entire country is in post-traumatic stress," says Zarka. "Ziv's psychiatry department is considered a national center of excellence for all ages, including early childhood. The need for us will grow after the war for soldiers and the returning population."
"Now I want to immigrate to Israel"
Later, among the booths, I meet Amy Davis from Philadelphia, a palliative care physician who had been seeking ways to volunteer in Israel throughout the war. Among hundreds of volunteer doctors from the United States who came to Israel, Amy arrived for three months of volunteering at Herzog Hospital.
"Now I want to immigrate to Israel," she says. "I can offer my medical skills to people in Israel. They need doctors in the center of the country too, but I spent four weeks on a preliminary trip in Beersheba and Zichron Yaakov, and everything was so beautiful and quiet that I realized I love the more remote places."
Amy Davis also examined the war situation up close. She downloaded the Home Front Command app and assessed the time required to reach a protected space in the places she visited. "A 30-second alert is fine for me, but not less," she says. "With less time, you can't even run from the shower to the shelter."
Davis is expected to arrive in Israel this coming summer. Like her, Leandra and Paul Forman from Toronto, both family physicians, are exploring the possibility of immigrating and settling in Ashkelon and the Negev.
"It was a small dream that after October 7, we wanted to fulfill," says Leandra, and Paul adds: "We understood that we could give something back to our people. After 30 years of practicing family medicine, we want to do it for our people." Paul's parents are already in Yad Binyamin, which should make the transition easier.
"If everyone gives what they can to the people and the state – it will be a lot for the State of Israel," they describe their motivation and focus on the south of the country, as Professor Zarka explained earlier: "You want to be in a place where you're needed most, not in Netanya or Tel Aviv."
At the MEDEX fair – which is part of a broader national program led by the Ministries of Aliyah and Integration, Health, Negev, Galilee, and National Resilience – together with Nefesh B'Nefesh and in partnership with the Jewish Agency – Minister of Aliyah and Integration Ofir Sofer, Director General of the Ministry of the Negev and Galilee Yohanan Mali, and Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Health Dr. Sefi Mendelovich are also circulating among the attendees, along with senior officials from "Nefesh B'Nefesh."
Two birds with one stone
The fair for doctors and medical professionals is a kind of flagship program for everyone. On one hand, it encourages immigration, and on the other hand, it addresses the worsening shortage of doctors in Israel, with an extra "encouragement" in the form of grants for doctors who will come to the Negev and Galilee. "In the past year, we have implemented the absorption of 519 immigrant doctors," says Minister Sofer. "This year's conference is larger than last year's, and this is significant news for Israeli citizens, alongside the strong desire of many Jews from around the world to support Israel and be part of the Zionist story."
Yohanan Mali, whose ministry budgets a grant of 400,000 shekels for doctors who decide to come to the Negev or Galilee, explains that often the decision hinges on other questions from potential immigrants. "They ask us about the education system, transportation, and employment opportunities for spouses.
"When we look at the willingness to move northward – these are the three main legs. Through this conference last year, we managed to bring a brain neurosurgeon to the south. We provide money for research and laboratories." In the end, or at the beginning, Mali says, doctors who come to Israel know they will have a dramatic decrease in income. "We can't compete with that, but once they've made the decision – we can provide them with a supportive framework."
The cooperation between the organization and government ministries also addresses Israel's current real need for doctors. In a conversation with Dr. Sefi Mendelovich, he explains that "There will be a dramatic drop in the number of doctors from 2026 following the Yatziv reform, but the vacuum is also a wonderful opportunity for renewal.
"These people here are our strategic rear"
"The Zionism of immigrant doctors aligns with a very specific need for doctors, especially in the periphery, where they will feel they are contributing much more." Regarding the war and the rehabilitation of the north, Mendelovich says: "We saw health funds that maintained clinics in Kiryat Shmona and other evacuated communities for over a year, this is the new plowline. Difficult years are coming in terms of doctor numbers, and these people here are our strategic rear. One doctor can elevate an entire department."
Among the booths at the conference, I was surprised to discover one belonging to the Tekuma Administration for the rehabilitation of Gaza border communities. At the booth sits Maya, who describes the enormous investment in healthcare (750 million shekels) in the Gaza border region, as well as the effort to recruit doctors for the community. "We offer a 300,000 shekel grant for doctors and require them to work in the region but not necessarily live there. Last year we brought one doctor to Sderot – and that's a world of difference for the residents. We're mainly working on the additional level for people who experienced trauma, and they are generally much more ill."
Converting a year into an hour
In another part of the world, immigrants take their certification documents out of large boxes. Just this morning they were hanging on the wall, but now they are brought to be verified on the way to receiving a license to practice medicine in Israel.
A process that takes an average of a year is shortened to just an hour. Deputy Director General of Nefesh B'Nefesh, Zeev Gershinski, says: "We have become the executive arm of the State of Israel in addressing the shortage of doctors. Just weeks after October 7, we handled, together with the Ministry of Health, hundreds of requests from doctors to come and volunteer in Israel. Now we are simply continuing that wave of solidarity and Zionism with those who want to make it permanent."
Just before evening falls, I meet Jonathan Hensch. He is walking around the fair with two suitcases, and it turns out that just a few hours ago he landed in the United States on his way back from Israel, where he had gone to accompany his eldest son who enlisted in the Golani Brigade.
While his wife and younger children wait in the car, he handles some of the immigration procedures at the fair and shares: "Israel has always been important to us, and October 7 is part of the reason we're doing this now. We were with my son in Israel, and a friend told me about this conference. It turned out we landed on the day it's taking place – it was meant to be."
While his son decided to give up a scholarship of excellence at a university to volunteer for the IDF, Jonathan decided on the complementary action. "Our children already study in Zionist schools today. My grandfather escaped from Budapest during the Holocaust and came to the United States, and he was sent to Egypt from where he transferred a great deal of weapons to Palestine for the fighting organizations. It's in our DNA. We're planning to immigrate this coming summer, but before that, we'll come to Israel for our son's beret ceremony."
