Supporting Mental
and Physical Wellness
To be effective, physical and mental health support must be provided in the cultural and linguistic context with which the patient is most comfortable. Two outstanding organizations in Israel today, Wuste Tzega and Tene Briut, provide health treatments and education that combine awareness of Ethiopian culture and Western approaches.
Tene Briut
Tene Briut provides health care, education, emergency support, translation services, and critical resources for the Ethiopian-Israeli community.
Tene Briut merges two languages: "Te'ne" means health or well-being in Amharic, and "Briut" means health in Hebrew. Tene Briut combines both to deliver culturally-sensitive, modern, effective health care and eduation to Ethiopian Jews in Israel today.
For many Ethiopian Jews, the transition to Israel and a mainly sedentary lifestyle has resulted in the emergence of chronic diseases, in particular diabetes. The very concept of chronic illness had been virtually unknown in Ethiopia and is particularly difficult for older members of the Ethiopian-Israeli community to grasp.
While only 0.4% of the new immigrants were diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes upon arrival, by the time they had lived in Israel for ten years the figure had risen to 18% - three times as many as in the general population. The incidence of hypertension, obesity, asthma and Type 1 diabetes had also increased dramatically.
Over the past two decades, Tene Briut has developed into a small but dedicated NGO, operating out of its own offices in Hadera and delivering services throughout Israel with the backing and cooperation of a wide range of local and national bodies, including the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Immigration, the absorption services, municipalities, the HMOs and hospitals.
Today the Tene Briut team comprises eight Ethiopian-Israeli healthcare professionals, three Amharic-speaking medical interpreters and four health promotion specialists familiar with the Ethiopian immigrant community. Organizations within Israel and beyond now look to Tene Briut's programs for training, guidance and inspiration to develop strategies for improving the health of immigrants and minority communities.
Contact Details
Avi Mesfin, Director
04-6211891
Komba 10/10, POB 3058, Hadera 38130
Tene Bruit (“health” in both Amharic and Hebrew) is dedicated to improving the health of the Ethiopian Israeli community, and firmly believes in the right of every Israeli citizen to access proper health care. Tene Bruit believes that fostering an informed, active health leadership from within the community itself is key to achieving its goals.
Wuste Tzega
Wuste Tzega, the Center for Culturally Adapted Psychotherapy, provides the Ethiopian-Israeli community with culturally sensitive psychotherapy, incorporating Ethiopian healing techniques and Western psychiatry.
"Wuste Tzega" was the name of a spring in Ethiopia where the Jewish community would visit for healing.
It means "grace from within."
Wuste Tzega's work encompasses direct therapy for Ethiopian-Israelis, as well as building the field of culturally adapted psychotherapy in Israel, including:
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Therapeutic approaches that connect people to themselves, their families, their communities, and nature. This therapy can be utilized for people with various degrees of trauma and emotional distress.
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Individual and group therapy at three clinics in Haifa, Hadera, and Lod.
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Academically supervised training courses for aspiring multicultural therapists and healers.
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Annual conferences, attended by a wide range of mental health professionals. Wuste Tzega's 2023 conference, "The Silent Trauma: Second Generation Trauma Among Ethiopian Immigrants who were in Sudan" was attended by over 100 professionals.
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Research on culturally adapted psychotherapy in the context of Ethiopian-Israelis.
Wuste Tzega aims to expand their services and therapy techniques to include Ethiopian arts and crafts, music, traditional ceremonies, and adaptations for additional ethnicities.
Founded in 2017 by Ethiopian-Israeli social worker Yeshitu Shmuel, Wuste Tzega served 150 individuals in 2023, and was one of the first centers to launch a national hotline, in Hebrew and Amharic, after the October 7 attack. Shmuel immigrated to Israel from Ethiopia in 1983, at the age of 11, after having walked on foot through the Sudanese desert. She holds an MA in clinical social work, with a specialization in trauma and stress, from Tel Aviv University. Wuste Tzega's Board Chair is Avraham Leader, an internationally acclaimed teacher of Jewish mysticism and spokesperson for WusteTzega.
To learn more about Wuste Tzega, read their 2023-24 Annual Report here or reach out to Avraham Leader.
