Measuring Resilience and Burnout Across Israel’s Healthcare System
The Ministry of Health Case Study
In a Nutshell
Sarid Institute, in partnership with the Israeli Ministry of Health, led the most comprehensive national resilience and burnout survey ever conducted in the country’s healthcare system, drawing responses from more than 58,000 healthcare workers. Built on broad, multidisciplinary collaboration, the project gave decision-makers a strategic picture of workforce wellbeing — backed by an intelligent dashboard and hundreds of field-level reports. The deliverables enable the Ministry to direct resources toward strengthening resilience and reducing burnout, to support its people, and to steer intervention efforts on a data-driven basis, reinforcing the system’s ability to function at its best in a period of emergency.
Background
Israel’s healthcare system is the country’s national safety net. Between March and May 2025, the Ministry of Health commissioned the third iteration of its national survey for measuring resilience and burnout across the healthcare system — carried out as part of the national program to strengthen healthcare workers and prevent burnout. The goal was to collect reliable data that could serve as the foundation for strategic decision-making and enable learning from earlier intervention programs. There was a critical need to understand the physical and mental state of employees across a complex, distributed system spanning hospitals, health funds (HMOs), and community clinics.
The Challenge
Fielding a comprehensive survey among medical teams working under extreme operational pressure demanded both operational and analytical creativity. The central challenge was not only to measure the level of burnout, but to identify the factors that drive it. The survey had to reach a wide range of roles and functions across every sector of the healthcare workforce — physicians, nurses, allied health professionals, administration, and support staff — and across every type of organization, from hospitals to health funds to the Ministry of Health itself. To justify redirecting budgets toward interventional resilience programs, the Ministry needed clear quantitative evidence and practical tools.
The Solution
The project was carried out through close, multidisciplinary collaboration among academic partners, leading survey-methodology experts, and specialists from the healthcare field. Together, we developed a multi-channel data-collection strategy combining SMS, email, dedicated links, and field surveyors. This approach produced an unprecedented response rate of 32% (58,273 respondents) out of roughly 181,000 workers in the system. Among other things, the project required:
- Integration of historical data: We cross-referenced current findings with data from previous surveys (2018, 2021), allowing us to identify deep trends, measure the effectiveness of earlier programs (such as a reduction in bureaucracy), and provide broad context.
- In-depth research: Beyond the macro-level data, we investigated the impact of specific interventions implemented in the field — for example, the effect of shorter shifts for medical residents and increased police presence in emergency rooms on employees’ sense of safety and workload. We also found statistically significant relationships between survey data (respondents’ feelings and intentions) and objective measures of employee attrition and patient experience.
- Multi-dimensional metrics: We measured three components of burnout, incorporated validated clinical screening tools (such as the PHQ-2), and developed an “intervention priority matrix” to focus managerial attention.
- Technological accessibility: We built an advanced interactive dashboard that lets decision-makers analyze the data, run complex cross-sections, and identify intervention hotspots in real time — alongside the generation of hundreds of tailored presentations (for different organizations, sectors, professions, and more) that support purposeful learning and presentation of the data across a variety of forums.
- Sharing knowledge with the public and professional conferences: Selected findings were published to the public on the Ministry of Health website and presented at a health-policy conference.
The Impact
The research generated immediate national and local impact. The statistical relationships we uncovered showed a strong correlation (rho = 0.68) between reported intentions to leave and employees’ actual resignations, and demonstrated how team burnout directly harms patient satisfaction across departments.
To ensure the insights did not remain at the macro level, we translated the findings into hundreds of focused reports and presentations delivered directly to the managements of organizations, hospitals, and frontline departments. These reports functioned as a roadmap that surfaced challenges alongside significant points of strength (92% of employees still feel a sense of meaning in their work). The tools we provided enabled the Ministry of Health to apply precise models for retaining human capital and strengthening teams in targeted departments.
“Launching the national survey during wartime was a particularly complex undertaking. Alongside the workloads and challenges facing healthcare organizations, we set out to give organizational leadership a reliable picture that would help them understand the working reality of their employees and make data-driven decisions. I am very pleased with the work with Sarid Institute; the partnership with them was the key to the initiative’s success. Their professionalism, thoroughness, and ability to combine research expertise, technology, and strong execution — even under challenging conditions — allowed us to turn the voices of tens of thousands of employees into meaningful insights for the organizations and for the healthcare system as a whole.“
— Vered Madmon Kiviti, Senior Director, Human Capital Development Division, Ministry of Health
Conclusions
The physical and mental health of employees is an operational and clinical prerequisite. By combining multidisciplinary expertise, precise in-depth research, technology, and rigorous data science, it is possible to turn overwhelming data and subjective emotions into clear strategies for action. The creation of hundreds of field-relevant reports proves that the success of a study is measured by its ability to be accessible, actionable, and tailored to every level of the organization.
About Sarid Institute
Sarid Institute is a strategic Data Science consultancy firm with over three decades of research experience serving a diverse clientele. Sarid accelerates organizations’ growth by discovering the insights driving People, Markets and Customers. We maintain our leading position by continually updating and offering innovative solutions, drawing on the broad expertise of our specialists and leveraging cutting-edge technologies. Our hands-on approach allows us to provide creative, customized solutions that meet the specific needs of each client.