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imprisoned from going free. Therefore he is exempt in a human court Orphans’ Fund. Logic dictates that we can prepare the medication
and one cannot deduct from the former thief ’s obligation to repay before the illness occurs, by affixing a mezuzah so that the fathers live
the theft, even though the victim of the theft will be held accountable and the sons not become orphans.
in Heaven for the injustice he perpetrated. Thus the repentant thief Likewise, if this woman continues to work, it is likely that she will
must pay the entire million shekels. collapse. (It seems from Tosfos (maseches Kesubos 63a, s.v. be’omer)
(It is also possible that according to Torah law he should have that teaching is one of the most difficult jobs.) If she collapses, the
been imprisoned for many years for his theft, and therfore one cannot sick leave will certainly be coming to her. If so, it makes sense to take
deduct from his obligation to repay what he stole. And this requires preventive steps. It is easier to support a person before he falls, lest he
further study.) fall, than to raise the person after he has already fallen. As it says in
Now we can return to judge our original question regarding a the Torah (Vayikra 25:35): “And if your brother is very poor and his
physician prolonging a patient’s hospitalization unnecessarily. As we means falter in your proximity, you should uphold him.” Rashi writes:
have said, the Shulchan Aruch asserts that if the person was already in Do not let him descend and fall, and it will be difficult to get him back
the room and the perpetrator closed the door so he cannot exit, this up, but uphold him as soon as he starts to fall. This is similar to a load
is only damage by grama and the perpetrator is exempt from paying on a donkey. While it is still on the donkey, one person can grab it
by a human court. Likewise, if a patient truly required hospitaliza- and straighten it. But if it fell on the ground, even five people cannot
tion, and the physician only gave instructions to prolong his stay, he stand it upright.
is exempt from paying. However, if the patient was in the emergency Moreover, since in this country a teacher legally receives a three-
room and the physician prdered him hospitalized in order to satisfy month maternity leave, it follows that if she had a difficult birth, such
the desire of the administration, he may be viewed as actively closing as a Caesarian section or pre-eclampsia and was hospitalized for a
the door. There is room to doubt even this because the physician did prolonged time, she deserves leave for longer than three months. As it
not forcibly close the door and therefore it may very possibly be con- says in the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim #330:4), any woman who
sidered damage by grama. gives birth is considered sick for thirty days. (According to Sheiltos
(Sheilta 186): up to thirty days she can eat on Yom Kippur if she says
“I need to,” as explained in the Rosh (Yoma 8:10).) However, if she
became ill after birth, she is considered sick for more than thirty days,
as explained in Shaar Hatziyun (ibid., 13).
So too in our case, a woman who had a difficult birth may require
Preventing a person from working by more than three months to recuperate. According to this approach, if
threatening and frightening him a member of her family had a serious illness and she is now in mourn-
ing, the three months should be extended. The three-month period
1 Question is not set in stone but can be determined by the physician for each
individual case.
Members of an underground movement abroad, seeking to finance All this applies as long as there are no instructions from the official
their activities, entered a bank. They tied a tin can to the manager’s bodies that pay for the sick-days that are contrary to what we have
foot and told him there was a deadly bomb in the box that would go written. If there are clear stipulations that they do not pay in these
296 1 Medical-HalacHic Responsa of Rav ZilbeRstein Sick leave 2 301
