Hatzolah

What Hatzolah does

Hatzolah Emergency Medical Service NPC is a South African non-profit company founded in 1998 and headquartered at 29 Durham Street, Raedene, Johannesburg. It operates a volunteer-led emergency medical response service for the Johannesburg Jewish community across approximately 2,500 emergency calls per year (averaging ~7 per day), with all responders required to be HPCSA-registered Health Professionals. The service is free of charge to all patients and is funded entirely through community donations collected via EFT, debit order, Snapscan, Zapper, and other channels. Its operational model is community-led: volunteer responders carry personal jump bags of medical equipment in their own vehicles and live in the zones they serve, with the service area divided into three response zones (A, B, C) to minimise response time. The organisation also operates Hatzolah Assist, a non-emergency response unit launched in February 2023. The team comprises approximately 165 individuals including a 6-member board, 12 full-time paramedics (5 ALS, 7 ILS), 3 full-time dispatchers, ~33 administrative staff, 50 volunteer emergency responders, 28 Hatzolah Assist volunteers, 15 volunteer dispatchers, and 18 Crisis Response Unit responders. Beyond emergency rescue, the portfolio extends into mental health (Crisis Response Unit, Hatzolah Connect teen line, RUOK Emotional Support Line), maternal wellness (Hatzolah Cares About Moms), senior fall prevention, a Medical Equipment Gemach, hospital Shabbat food cabinets at Linksfield and Milpark Hospitals, a training centre delivering CPR/ACLS/BLS/Stop the Bleed, and a SANBS blood drive partnership that has reported 2,136+ lives saved. Core partnerships span Netcare Milpark and Linksfield Park hospitals, HPCSA, Resuscitation Council of Southern Africa, American Heart Association, and corporate sponsors 36One, Investec, and Discovery.

Name

Hatzolah

Legal name

Hatzolah Emergency Medical Service NPC

Website

https://hatzolah.co.za

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Hatzolah is a Johannesburg-based non-profit, volunteer-led emergency medical service that provides free, HPCSA-registered pre-hospital care, crisis support, and community wellness programmes exclusively to the Johannesburg Jewish community.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Emergency Medical Services

NAICS

Emergency and Other Relief Services (62423), Ambulance Services (62191)

SIC

Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Paramedicine & Mobile Integrated Healthcare (MIH/CP) Programs (HLAFANAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Humanitarian Health & Emergency Medical Relief NGOs (HLAJAKAE), Maternal, Newborn, Child & Adolescent Health (MNCAH) NGOs (HLAJAKAG)

Keywords

• Emergency medical services
• Volunteer ambulance services
• Community healthcare response
• Crisis psychological support
• Medical training programmes

Headquarters

HQ city

Johannesburg

HQ country

South Africa

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Community Donations: As a community-funded, not-for-profit organisation, Hatzolah relies solely on the generosity of the community to cover essential running costs such as ambulances, training, administration and equipment. Donations can be made via EFT, online credit card, Snapscan, Walletdoc, Zapper, and debit orders.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Hatzolah is a non-profit, volunteer-led emergency medical rescue organisation providing free 24/7 pre-hospital emergency medical care, stabilisation, and ambulance transport for the Johannesburg Jewish community. Core services are delivered by HPCSA-registered volunteer responders carrying medical jump bags in personal vehicles, supplemented by dedicated units for non-emergency assistance, psychological first aid, teen support, emotional support, and community medical equipment loans.

Product overview

Hatzolah is a non-profit, volunteer-led medical rescue organisation offering emergency response services to the Johannesburg Jewish community. The core offering is Medical Rescue Services supplemented by multiple community care programmes. The Hatzolah Assist Unit provides non-emergency assistance, while the Crisis Response Unit offers psychological first aid. Community wellness is supported through the Hatzolah Connect teen chat line, R U OK? Emotional Support Line, and Hatzolah Cares About Moms programme. The Medical Equipment Gemach provides free equipment loans, and the Shabbat Mobile Home serves families at hospitals. A Training Centre offers CPR, first aid, and emergency courses to the community. Additional initiatives include Life2Life blood/organ donation awareness, My QR Code medical information system, AED boxes in shuls, ECG cardiac screening for students, Hugo's Heroes school first aid teams, and the Fall Prevention programme for seniors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Medical Rescue Services Free 24/7 volunteer emergency medical response service providing rapid on-scene stabilisation, life support treatment, and ambulance transport to hospital for the Johannesburg Jewish community, handling approximately 2,500 emergency calls per year.
• Hatzolah Assist Unit Non-emergency assistance unit that responds to calls not requiring ambulances, such as helping elderly individuals get up off the floor and providing patient lifting and carrying services, logging 186 assist calls in the reported period.
• Medical Equipment Gemach Free loan service providing wheelchairs, mobility scooters, walkers, toilet seat raises, bath seats, shower seats, crutches, and moon boots for up to 6 weeks, with 904 equipment loans recorded in the reported period.
• Shabbat Mobile Home Fully Shabbat-equipped mobile home delivered to hospitals, accommodating up to 6 family members for overnight stays during Shabbat and Yom Tov.
• Hatzolah Cares About Moms Wellness programme supporting mothers through pregnancy and the first year postpartum with care packs, postnatal depression awareness, parenting tips, and community support, with 129 packs delivered to 62 moms on the programme in the reported period.
• Crisis Response Unit (CRU) Psychological first aid service providing emotional support to family members, friends, and bystanders experiencing trauma at emergency scenes, with 24 CRU call-outs in the reported period.
• Hatzolah Connect Anonymous and secure chat line for teenagers providing trained counsellor support for issues at school, home, or emotional struggles, available 24/7, with 937 chats handled in the reported period.
• R U OK? Emotional Support Line 24/7 confidential emotional support telephone line staffed by trained counsellors for individuals experiencing difficulties or needing extra support.
• Training Centre Courses State-of-the-art training facility offering courses including Family & Friends CPR, First Aid for Children, BLS, ACLS, Stop the Bleed, and Fire Prevention to both members and the community, with 1,375 trained participants across 178 CPR courses in the reported period.
• Blood Drive Community blood donation drives run in partnership with SANBS, with 5 drives collecting 740 donations and contributing to 2,136+ lives saved across the reported drives.
• Future@Hatzolah Medic Programme One-year full-time training programme that produces certified medics with a fully paid bursary and monthly salary, with a mandatory 3-year volunteer service commitment to Hatzolah afterwards, with 5 students enrolled in the reported period.
• Hospital Food Cabinets Food cabinets installed in the casualty sections of Linksfield and Milpark Hospitals providing Shabbat and Yom Tov supplies for admitted community members.
• Fall Prevention Screening Programme Free home assessment programme for seniors aged 65+ evaluating cognitive functions, mobility, balance, gait, and home environment to prevent falls, with 56 sign-ups in the reported period.

Quantifiable outcome

• Hatzolah responds to ~2,500 emergency calls per year at average of 7 calls per day
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• SANBS (South African National Blood Service)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHatzolah partnered with SANBS during COVID-19 to run blood drives. Over 4 successful drives, 2,136 lives were saved through blood donations facilitated by Hatzolah.
• Netcare Milpark HospitalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthcare partnership with Netcare Milpark Hospital for cardiac patient care and emergency transfers.
• Netcare Linksfield Park ClinicminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthcare partnership with Netcare Linksfield Park Clinic for patient transfers and emergency care coordination.
• HPCSA (Health Professions Council of South Africa)coreOthersAll Hatzolah responders are officially registered Health Professionals with HPCSA, governing medical professional standards.
• Resuscitation Council of Southern AfricaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTraining courses conducted in accordance with Resuscitation Council of Southern Africa & American Heart Association guidelines.
• American Heart AssociationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTraining courses aligned with American Heart Association guidelines, particularly for CPR and emergency cardiovascular care.
• Life2LifeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLife2Life educates and raises awareness about blood and organ donation within the South African Jewish community. Related to but distinct from Hatzolah.
• Linksfield HospitalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHatzolah has installed food cabinets in the casualty section of Linksfield Hospital for community members admitted on Shabbat or Yom Tov.
• Milpark HospitalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHatzolah has installed food cabinets in the casualty section of Milpark Hospital for community members admitted on Shabbat or Yom Tov.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• London Hatzalah: UK volunteer Jewish-community EMS serving London and surrounding areas with the same rapid-response volunteer model. Direct international peer facing similar community-embedded operational dynamics.
• United Hatzalah of Israel: Israel's national volunteer EMS network using the same community-embedded model — volunteer medics with personal medical equipment dispatched via app to provide pre-hospital care. Most direct functional and philosophical peer to Hatzolah Johannesburg.
• Chevra Hatzalah (NYC): Volunteer ambulance service serving the New York Jewish community since 1965 using a near-identical model of community-based volunteer responders. Closest geographic and operational counterpart in North America.
• Hatzolah Australia: Volunteer Jewish-community EMS serving Melbourne and Sydney with the same community-funded rapid-response model. Direct diaspora peer in a comparable regulatory environment.
• St John Ambulance South Africa: South African volunteer-led first-aid and ambulance organization with similar volunteer ethos, community training programmes (CPR, first aid), and event-medical coverage. Most direct domestic peer operating in the same regulatory and geographic context.

Broad incumbents

• Netcare 911: South Africa's largest private ambulance and emergency medical service, operating nationally with paid paramedics. Overlaps directly with Hatzolah's ambulance transport function but competes on scale, billing, and dispatch infrastructure.
• Magen David Adom: Israel's national EMS and blood service operating as the country's official first responder organization. Comparable emergency medical mission at much larger scale, with broader ambulance, blood-bank, and disaster-response mandate.
• ER24: Major South African private emergency medical care and ambulance service with national coverage. Comparable core EMS function but operates on commercial fee-for-service model rather than volunteer/donation model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks3 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/ConnectwithHatzolah
• Instagraminstagram.com/hatzolah_connect
• Xx.com/HatzolahSA

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hatzolah