Looking Back From the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History accessible at thejewishnews.com 62 | MAY 9 • 2024 J N A Hospital Like No Other S ometimes a good story is just under my nose. In this case, sitting two desks away from me. I told David Sachs, JN Contributing Editor, that I was thinking about a column on Sinai Hospital in Detroit. The original Sinai (preceding today’s DMC Sinai-Grace Hospital in Detroit and DMC Huron Valley-Sinai Hospital in Commerce Township) would have been 71 years old this year. David said: “Did you know that Freda (his wife, Dr. Freda Lengel Arlow) was a researcher and doctor at Sinai?” As David related, Freda felt working at Sinai was “an extraordinary experience, both as a medical technologist and later as a physician. ” So, I thought I should explore Freda and Sinai Hospital in the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History. Indeed, nearly 8,000 pages mention Sinai Hospital (although some citations are for Sinai hospitals elsewhere). Historically, Sinai Hospital is well-recognized as the first and only Jewish hospital in Detroit. The idea of a hospital that would not discriminate against Jews had deep roots in the city’s Jewish community (for an early history, see “The Jewish Hospital in Detroit, ” Jan. 12, 1945). Opened in 1953, Sinai was a marvel. It featured cutting-edge medical technology and research, and employed a large contingent of Jewish doctors and staff. It offered kosher meals and respected Jewish religious practices. Sinai also embodied tikkun olam, by serving other underrepresented groups such as African Americans, who, like Jews, faced discrimination in Detroit’s medical facilities. Freda initially joined Sinai as a medical technologist in 1972. Her early stint there included two years working in Sinai’s prestigious research department. Her experience inspired Freda to become a doctor and, in 1976, she entered medical school at Wayne State. After graduation, Freda returned to Sinai as a Internal Medicine resident, including one year as chief resident. She then accepted a fellowship in Gastroenterology at Henry Ford Health System and has been practicing her profession for 38 years, still working part-time. I found two articles about research at Sinai in which Freda is noted and pictured in a photograph (Sept. 6, 1974). Freda, or Dr. Arlow, has distinct memories of Sinai: “It was due to discrimination that Sinai Hospital came into existence. The values of Judaism were important to the doctors and staff, and that gave us a special bond. ” Sinai Hospital was sold to DMC in 1997, and the $63 million proceeds were used to create the Jewish Fund, a charity dedicated to improving community health. But Sinai Hopital’s legacy is indelible. Freda provides a summary: “We were all shocked by the closing of the original Sinai. It was a unique Jewish academic institution. When former Sinai doctors meet up, they often commiserate and say the same thing: ‘There will never be another Sinai Hospital. ’” Want to learn more? Go to the DJN archives, available for free at thejewishnews.com. Mike Smith Alene and Graham Landau Archivist Chair Freda and David’s 2019 wedding in Krakow, Poland (JN, Dec. 24, 2020).