There are definitely those times that arise in the field of EMS where religion plays into a situation. In Israel, this can be seen in the case of Haredim vs. Female Paramedics (and of course other instances as well). In Jewish tradition and text it is always stated that an individual's health comes before religious obligations. What does this mean? If you are dying of a heart attack you probably don't care whether or not a woman is working on you.
In a specific case that happened a little over a month ago, a female paramedic and her two other partners were dispatched to a to a synagogue in Jerusalem's Givat Shaul neighborhood after a man fainted. Unfortunately, when she arrived she was immediately shoved out of the synagogue because women are forbidden to enter this holy site. This just flat out ticks me off. As medics, male or female, we should be able to have access to our patients despite any religious quarums, that means even if the shul is closed to women, if someone's life is at stake let her in. This isn't the first time an event like this has happened in Israel. Another case left the victim dead after a similar occurence of forbidding a female partner to enter the scene.
So, if you are a very religious person and see women as a problem in a religious facility, I urge you to look at your friend who is possibly dying or suffering greatly and I encourage you to ask yourself, is it really worth all this? If G-d sent you an angel and it was a woman, would you really turn her down?
Think about it...
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