uni'alumni 2013_ENG

The temporary solution has become permanent: On 1 November 2011, Prof. Dr. Jörg Rüdiger Siewert became chief executive officer and chief medical director of the Freiburg University Medi- cal Center. In an interview with Nicolas Scherger, he looks back on an eventful year and describes his vision for the medical center’s future. uni’alumni: Prof. Siewert, was it the right decision for you to come from Heidelberg to Freiburg? Jörg Rüdiger Siewert: It was a necessary decision. I had done every- thing that needed to be done in Heidel- berg. It was important for Freiburg to achieve a stable situation again. For the coming years at least, it is good to have an experienced captain at the helm. Before you came to Freiburg, there was a conflict among the execu- tives over who was responsible for what. How did you and the new business director Reinhold Keil work that out? I had already overhauled the organiza- tion of executive responsibilities during my tenure as acting CEO. Freiburg is now organized in the same way as Heidelberg, Berlin, or Munich. Reinhold Keil entered into this structure from the start. We left everything the way it was by mutual consent and discuss many things together, as is common practice among adults. At the New Year’s reception in 2012 you maintained that the medical center doesn’t have enough self- confidence. When I arrived here, people in Freiburg were a little ashamed of the medical center. They said everything was in disarray. Now people from outside approach me and say: Thank goodness things have settled down again and we can focus on what’s positive. Things are moving forward. Internally, we need to make it even clearer that our outstand- ing medical work is something to be proud of. In April 2012 the medical center’s Cardiovascular Center and the Heart Center Bad Krozingen merged? Why? Progress in practical medicine is driven by clinical studies, and that means you need a lot of patients. The new Univer- sity Heart Center Freiburg-Bad Krozin- gen is the largest institution of its kind in Germany. The patients there can be certain of receiving the most modern treatment possible. The two partners will pool their expertise, and the merger will be fruitful for both. The new Emergency Center was opened in August 2012. How was the launch? Phenomenal. The concept is new and almost one of a kind in Germany: The center is responsible for all emergen- cies at the medical center, it is equipped to carry out all modern diagnostic procedures, and for the first time ever surgeons, internists, and neurologists can all work together on the patients. Once the diagnosis has been made, the patient is transferred to the specialists he or she needs. The acceptance of the Jörg Rüdiger Siewert has served as chief medical director and chief executive officer of the Freiburg University Medical Center since 1 November 2011. He had already assumed these posts in an acting capacity in March 2011, while still serving in the same function at the University Hospital Heidelberg. “Star Surgeon to Restore Order,” ran the headline in the Badische Zeitung when his move to Freiburg was announced. Born in 1940, Siewert studied medicine in Berlin and completed his medical training and habilitation in Göttingen. He enjoys an excellent reputation worldwide as a researcher and pioneer in surgical oncology and is regarded as an experienced and authoritative hospi- tal director: From 1987 to 2007 he served as medical director of the medical center “Klinikum rechts der Isar,” which belongs to the Technical University of Munich. He then accepted the same position in Heidelberg. From 2001 to July 2012, Siewart also chaired the Federation of German University Medical Centers. Photo: Freiburg University Medical Center INTERVIEWINTERVIEW “We Want to Play in the Champions League” Jörg Rüdiger Siewert has set lofty goals for the Freiburg University Medical Center University News uni'alumni 201330

uni'alumni 2013_ENG

Pages