For the first time: Clalit and the Enosh Association inaugurated a dedicated stabilization home for teenagers in Netivot

Clalit Health Services, in cooperation with the "Enosh" Association, inaugurated today (Monday) in Netivot a dedicated stabilization home for teenagers dealing with mental distress. The stabilization home, "Nitzanim", offers an alternative to psychiatric hospitalization for those aged 12–18, against the backdrop of Clalit data indicating an increase of over 30% in the number of patients under 18 who turned to mental health emergency rooms.

Against the backdrop of the rise in mental distress among young people, Clalit and the Enosh Association opened a first stabilization home specifically for teenagers, intended for Clalit patients from all over the country. The stabilization home "Nitzanim" is operated by the Enosh Association and serves as an alternative to psychiatric hospitalization for 12–18 year olds dealing with an acute mental crisis. The stay at the home includes a multi-professional staff, treatment, and the maintenance of study continuity in a home environment.

The need for this framework is reflected in Clalit's data, which indicates an aggravation in the distress of teenagers in the first half of 2026, compared to the same period last year: the number of patients who turned to emergency rooms in mental health centers rose by 31%. In addition, the use of anti-anxiety and antidepressant medications rose by 19%.

The first stabilization home that Clalit opened specifically for teenagers offers, in appropriate cases and subject to professional assessment, an alternative to psychiatric hospitalization. It provides a response, among other things, in cases of teenagers who avoid going to school against the backdrop of mental difficulty, or where there is a noticeable impairment in routine social activity.

"Nitzanim" is located in a quiet neighborhood in Netivot and provides focused treatment for a period of up to three months. The treatment is intended to stabilize the mental state of the teenagers, prevent deterioration, and help them return safely and gradually to their life frameworks, to integrate into educational structures, and later also into military or national service.

The treatment at the home is provided by a multi-professional team including psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, art therapists, educators, and instructors. Involvement from the patient's family is an inseparable part of the treatment and recovery process. Parents receive accompaniment and tools that will help them in coping and further supporting their children after their return home.

Dr. Tzahi Ben Zion, the chief psychiatrist at Clalit Southern District, spoke at the opening ceremony:

«Today we are not just inaugurating a new house, we are opening a door to a new opportunity, an opportunity for a boy or girl to go through a period of crisis in a supportive and inclusive environment without moving as far as possible from home, family, and community. A place where one can stop to breathe, receive treatment, feel safe, and mainly remember that even within a crisis there is a way forward.»

Dr. Hilla Hadas, CEO of Enosh, welcomed the opening:

«In adolescence, there is enormous significance to the ability to receive intensive and professional treatment without disconnecting completely from life. A stabilization home allows maintaining as much as possible this continuity even in a period of acute mental crisis.»

Hedva Emuna, Director of Clalit Southern District, also delivered remarks:

«Following the Simchat Torah disaster, huge challenges in the field of mental health were added to the State of Israel. The number of inquiries in the community grew by tens of percent. I wish that this house will be a house of healing and hope, where every boy and girl will feel that they are entering a place that believes in them.»