Bavly returned to Palestine in August 1929. In addition to her new role as chief dietitian for Hadassah hospitals, she was asked to open a nutrition department at the recently constructed Nathan Straus Health Center in Jerusalem. However, the 1929 Palestine riots broke out at this time and she and other residents were forced to take shelter in the Straus Center for a week. In this and other emergency situations over the coming two decades, Bavly's department supervised and provided food for immigrants and for paramilitary and military forces.