IDF finds trouble, but no blame, in senior officer’s apparent fatal heart attack

[ad_1]

An Israel Defense Forces investigation into the sudden death of Colonel Sharon Asman, who collapsed while training at a military base last year, revealed a number of problems in the health system of the army, but none of them caused his death, the army said on Tuesday.

Asman, 42, who had just been appointed commander of the Nahal infantry brigade, suddenly collapsed after a short run with a number of other military officers. He received first aid at the scene but was pronounced dead a short time later.

More than six months after Asman’s death, the army has still not been able to determine the precise cause, but it seems to be a form of heart failure, probably caused by a undiagnosed heart disease, the IDF said.

The investigative committee, headed by Brig. Gen. (res.) Guy Hasson presented his findings to IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi on Monday.

The committee found that medical personnel called in when Asman collapsed were slow to use a defibrillator, which can check the heartbeat, and should have been brought in sooner. Still doing so would not necessarily have saved his life, the military said.

Receive the daily edition of The Times of Israel by email and never miss our best articles

By registering, you agree to the terms

“The committee found that the Nahal Brigade doctor responded quickly, reaching Colonel Sharon Asman of blessed memory just minutes after he collapsed, and immediately began performing CPR with the assistance of an ambulance crew. Magen David Adom who arrived on the scene. In addition to the medical treatment, the committee concluded that it would have been correct to involve the defibrillator at an earlier stage in the CPR process. At the same time, this discovery does not mean that the results of this tragic event were preventable,” the military said in a statement.

The Investigative Committee found no one guilty of Asman’s death.

The committee recommended installing defibrillators in every military drill center, as is already legally required in every civilian gymnasium. He also recommended improving cooperation between the army and the MDA ambulance service to ensure faster response times in the future.

The recommendations were accepted by Kohavi, who has ordered defibrillators installed in every IDF gymnasium by July 1, 2022 – the first anniversary of Asman’s death.

In addition, Kohavi accepted the committee’s recommendations that the military ensure that service members’ health declarations are regularly completed, that at-risk service members are monitored more closely, and that career soldiers undergo regular physical examinations as a condition of promotion.

The findings of the investigation were shown to Asman’s family, the IDF said.

Asman’s death came as a particular shock to the army, as he had only started as a brigade commander a few days earlier and was considered a rising star in the IDF.

Asman had served in the army for about 25 years and had fought in Lebanon and Gaza.

IDF Northern Command chief Amir Baram said Asman was “a wonderful warrior and soldier”.

“He was a sabra – tough on the outside and sensitive on the inside. He always cared for his soldiers and subordinate officers, his colleagues and his commanders,” Baram said.

Are you serious. We appreciate that!

We’re really glad you’ve read the X Times of Israel articles over the past month.

That’s why we come to work every day – to provide discerning readers like you with unmissable coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.

So now we have a request. Unlike other media, we don’t have a paywall in place. But because the journalism we do is expensive, we invite readers to whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel community.

For just $6 a month, you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to members of the Times of Israel community.

Join our community Join our community Already a member? Log in to stop seeing this

[ad_2]