According to the Chief Rabbinate of Israel, 60,000 britot were conducted in Israel in 2012. Of this number, there were 38 cases with complications. The study shows that the likelihood of complications in a bris performed by a non certified mohel or doctor is three times as great as compared to a bris performed by a certified mohel.

The joint committee combined of officials from the Chief Rabbinate and Health Ministry recently recertified 45 mohelim. They routinely have to attend refresher an ongoing educational courses to maintain their certification. The facts were confirmed by Dr. Eli Schussheim, who heads the joint committee. The committee reports that 38 cases in which there were complications out of 60,000 britot represents 0.0006%. Complications refer to the number of cases in which a baby was taken to an emergency room. Some of the 38 were for “bleeding” and no medical intervention was required in some of those cases. In some of the cases, it was determined that the trip to an emergency room simply was unnecessary and the problem could have been addressed by the mohel had the family opted to phone him.

This number was three times higher when they studied britot performed by an uncertified mohel. 40% of the cases in which parents arrived at an emergency room occurred on Shabbos, with parents explaining they assumed the mohel was not reachable. According to Dr. Moshe Vistreich, a Health Ministry member of the committee, “therefore it is critical that the mohel explain to parents that he is available and can be reached on Shabbos. A mohel may not vanish and he must address the concerns and anxiety of parents if and when they fear something is wrong, even if the mohel believes everything is fine. If the parents wish to bring a child to an emergency room, a mohel mustn’t say that everything is okay. It is preferable that the mohel accompanies the parents to the emergency room.”

According to Chief Rabbinate of Israel Director-General Oded Weiner, the meeting between a mohel and the parents is essential. Weiner feels there is no need for a Bris Milah Law since most families have the mitzvah performed, doing so happily. He feels that the mohel has the potential to perform a great Kiddush Hashem during the bris but this cannot be accomplished when a mohel schedules too many britot in proximity to one another. While it is important for a mohel to be efficient and to expedite the bris, doing so at the expense of parent’s feeling of confidence in his actions is unwanted.

The experts spoke about the recent case in which an infant was rushed to an emergency room and he died in the hospital R”L. Officials from the Chief Rabbinate reminded the forum the doctors who treated the child reported the incident was due to choking, and not the result of any negligence by the mohel. Rabbi Moshe Marciano, who heads the Bris Unit of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel added that he spoke to the doctors who treated the baby and they confirmed this to be so.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)