Milestones 2021/22

Hirslanden Bern opts for water dispensers instead of PET bottles

Hirslanden Bern offers its employees free water – and, since 2022, this has been via water dispensers instead of PET bottles. Following Klinik Beau-Site, Klinik Permanence will also be making the switchover by the end of 2022. This will save around 112 500 1-litre PET bottles each year.

Hirslanden Bern focuses on innovation with robot-assisted surgical technique

In addition to the long-standing, successful use of the MAKO robot arm in orthopaedic procedures, the Omnibotics knee robot has been used as an innovative technology at Klinik Permanence alongside the classic surgical technique since 2022. 

COO personnel and organisational change

Stephan Pahls, COO East, leaves Hirslanden to devote more time to humanitarian aid and development cooperation. Hospitals in both regions report to Stéphan Studer, formally COO West, as of 1 April 2022.

Hirslanden among the most valued brands in Switzerland

The Hirslanden brand joins heavyweights such as Migros, Victorinox, and Lindt & Sprüngli in the GfK ranking; it is the only healthcare provider to make it into the top 20 brands with the strongest reputation in Switzerland.

New Cranio-Cerebral Centre

Up to now a specialism within the Spine Centre by the specialists in La Colline, the new Cranio-Cerebral Centre makes it possible to treat cranial or cerebral pathologies in Grangettes.

Support for those affected by the war in Ukraine

Hirslanden supports those affected by the war in Ukraine in two ways: Donations amounting to CHF 228 174 are generated and donated in collaboration with the Swiss humanitarian foundation, Glückskette. In addition, medical supplies worth CHF 150 000 are collected in hospitals and delivered to Ukraine.

CCO personnel change

Chief Clinical Officer, Christian Westerhoff, leaves Hirslanden. His successor is Dominique Kuhlen. In addition to her extensive clinical expertise, the neurosurgeon also holds qualifications in the fields of management and law.

Certification of Intermediate Care Unit

The Intermediate Care Unit at Klinik Birshof is certified according to the Swiss guidelines of the Commission for the Certification of Intermediate Care Units (KAIMC).

Opening of the Bone & Motion Centre within Hirslanden Clinique Bois-Cerf

Orthopaedic and traumatology centre specialising in treating traumatic conditions and complex surgeries of the musculoskeletal system.

Pascal Zuberbühler speaks out

Talking openly about bowel cancer and potential prevention can save lives. To this end, former Swiss national goalkeeper Pascal Zuberbühler and the Association for the Prevention of Colorectal Cancer launch a series of talks with other celebrities for the second year of the “I feel good” campaign. Hirslanden supports this awareness campaign.

«Your trusted partner»: Childbirth campaign breaks taboos

The social media campaign highlights the strengths of our obstetric services and breaks taboos by dealing honestly with the topics of pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. To complement the campaign, a TV series «Oh Baby – Our Journey to Parenthood» airs on the Swiss Sat. 1 channel.

Opening of the Institute for Nuclear Medicine Bern

The Institute for Nuclear Medicine opens at the Salem-Spital site. Dr med. Jan Wartenberg and Dr med. Bernd Vollnberg, who are both specialists in nuclear medicine and radiology, are appointed as medical directors.

Medbase, Hirslanden, Groupe Mutuel, Helsana and Swica launch a joint healthcare ecosystem

The objective of the joint venture, «Compassana», is to improve the coordination of medical care. At the heart of the accessible ecosystem is a simple, user-friendly digital portal, which customers can use with ease to coordinate their own healthcare services.

«Schachenallee» building project in Aarau

This project focuses entirely on patient benefits. It offers immense potential for future developments and also contributes to the location’s success. The extension is scheduled to open in 2027.  

The key to (improving) climate protection is teamwork

CO2-neutral by 2030! Thanks to the collaboration between the Hirslanden Group and Johnson & Johnson, we are on the right track: together we are feeding materials from used medical equipment back into the resource cycle.

Klinik Hirslanden Zurich turns 90

«90 years of dedication to your health» is the theme of the 90th anniversary celebrations at Klinik Hirslanden, which, as Switzerland’s largest private hospital, makes a significant contribution to ensuring the provision of healthcare in the canton of Zurich.

Record number of births at the Hirslanden Group’s maternity hospitals

2021 is a bumper year for births for the Hirslanden Group. Along with other hospitals, AndreasKlinik Cham Zug celebrates a record achievement of more than 500 births.

Our commitment to fighting Covid-19: The creation of 11 vaccination centres

To support the Swiss population in fighting the Covid-19 pandemic, Hirslanden establishes a total of 11 vaccination centres, including 2 booster vaccination centres. More than 1 000 000 vaccinations are administered.

Hirslanden becomes «Impflanden» #ZusammenGegenCorona

Hirslanden shows its stance in the debate on Covid-19 vaccinations: We are one of the first Swiss companies to join the viral vaccination campaign #ZusammenGegenCorona (#TogetherAgainstCorona), which involves companies adding the word «Impf» (German for vaccination) to their logo to raise awareness of how essential it is to get vaccinated against Covid-19. «Hirslanden» becomes «Impflanden» right away.

Successful certification for the Tumour Centre

The Tumour Centre at Klinik St. Anna successfully attains certification according to the criteria set by the German Cancer Society (DKG). The certification attests to interdisciplinary, high-quality medical treatment of oncological patients.

Spital Lachen and the Hirslanden Group extend their collaboration

Hirslanden acquires a 10 per cent share in Spital Lachen AG and takes a seat on the Management Board. The collaboration further boosts the competitiveness of Spital Lachen and the quality of the medical services that it offers.

Mother and Child Centre: holistic care

Ever more safety, ever more comfort: by relying on its medical and nursing teams, the maternity ward in Grangettes is strengthening its position in Switzerland.

Opening of the Hirslanden Precise Laboratory

Hirslanden opens its own centre of expertise for genomic medicine. Concomitant to conventional approaches, genomic medicine examines people’s individual genetic make-up and tailors medical treatment accordingly, with the aim of providing even more individualised, targeted treatment. Thanks to our own laboratory with state-of-the-art equipment (NGS), we are able to offer all the steps of genetic testing ourselves, from counselling to analysis and reporting. Security and privacy are paramount.  

The foundation stone is laid for the ANNAplus building project

Around 40 guests, including representatives of the Lucerne City Council, the locality, the Sisters of St. Anne, community associations and the project itself, celebrate the traditional laying of the foundation stone. A wooden box filled with contemporary documents and symbolic items is placed directly behind the foundation stone of the ANNAplus building project, among them a healthcare tunic signed by St. Anna employees.

The first hybrid Hirslanden Doctors’ Summit 2021

Our biggest in-house doctors’ event takes place in hybrid form for the first time. Topics of discussion include digital transformation, the relevance of partnerships with our medical professionals, «The Future of Healthcare» and efficient decision-making approaches. More than 400 doctors take part in the event, both in person and online.

Future Career Day: School children gain an insight into the world of work

At the first digital Future Career Day, which is held jointly by Klinik Hirslanden, Klinik Im Park and the Corporate Office, more than 60 school children gain diverse insights into Hirslanden careers.

Continuum of Care: Collaboration with the City of Aarau

Thanks to a joint initiative with Hirslanden Klinik Aarau, the municipal nursing homes in Aarau now benefit from innovative GP care and physiotherapy onsite.

Renovations following a fire at Klinik Hirslanden

On 10 May 2021, a fire broke out on the roof of the south wing of Klinik Hirslanden in Zurich. ​Thanks to the efficient emergency response measures in place and exemplary teamwork with the fire and rescue service, no one was injured. However, the roof and several floors were severely damaged. After only 105 days of building work, the renovated wards are reopened at the beginning of November 2021.

Covid-19: Launch of pool tests for everyone

Hirslanden expands the «TOGETHER WE TEST» platform, which enables people across the country to take part in pooled PCR saliva tests. This extends Hirslanden’s commitment to combating the Covid-19 pandemic, and contributes to the prevention of Covid-19 infections and severe cases.

Opening of the Hand Centre at Salem-Spital in Bern

Dr med. Rahel Meier and Dr med. Luzian Haug open the new Hand Centre at Salem-Spital in Bern. Thereby, Hirslanden expands its hand surgery services in the Bern area.

Movember – marking men’s health

After many of our clinics were lit up in pink during Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October, they now shine blue for Men’s Health Month, «Movember». We want to draw attention to the important issue of men’s health with this initiative as urological check-ups are still very much a no-go area for many men.

Exclusive lounge for patients with supplementary insurance at AndreasKlinik Cham Zug

Patients with supplementary insurance have exclusive access to the lounge during their inpatient stay at AndreasKlinik Cham Zug. The lounge is extremely appealing due to its relaxed, peaceful atmosphere.

Multidisciplinary collaboration in the care of breast cancer

The specialists from the Breast Centre and the Radiology Institute work in close collaboration when treating breast cancer.

Hirslanden goes pink

Many of our hospitals are lit up in pink during Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October. This is an initiative to draw attention to how vital the prevention, early detection and treatment of breast cancer is; a disease that affects over 6 000 women in Switzerland every year.

The Hirslanden Leadership Summit 2021

The 2021 Leadership Summit is a productive one: Hirslanden senior management meet for two days for in-depth discussions on the key areas of «values» and «culture».

Universum survey: Hirslanden in the top 5

Every year, professionals choose their ideal employer in the «Universum Talent Survey», the largest independent career survey in Switzerland. Hirslanden reaches the top 5 (professionals) and 6th place (students) in the 2021 list of the most attractive employers in Switzerland.

Recruiting: Express application via WhatsApp

In order to counteract the shortage of skilled nursing staff and to target younger generations more effectively, Hirslanden greatly simplifies the application process for nursing professionals: anyone who is thinking of changing jobs can now apply easily via WhatsApp.  

1 000 MAKO robotic arm-assisted operations in Bern – two years earlier than planned!

On 16 September, the 1000th operation assisted by the Mako robotic arm takes place at Hirslanden Bern – a whole two years ahead of schedule! A great success for robot-assisted surgical technology in Bern.

New hospital manager for the Lausanne Bois-Cerf & Cecil hospitals: Inka Moritz

With joint management anticipated for the two Lausanne hospitals in the future, Hirslanden is reinforcing the regional network concept in order to optimise synergies between the two hospitals and pursue the development of the Lausanne site in a targeted manner.

Opening of the Digestive Diseases Centre in Lausanne

Brought together under one roof, doctors specialising in gastroenterology, hepatology and abdominal surgery are offering a multidisciplinary approach in order to treat all of the classic and more complex pathologies of the digestive tract.

Healthy employees are the key to success

Klinik Stephanshorn is awarded the Friendly Work Space Label for the second time. This not only makes us proud, but also commits us to creating health-promoting processes and structures.

A surprise for Klinik Hirslanden employees

Our employees are totally surprised by a thank-you gesture: «Change Moments» moves employees to tears of joy during the difficult pandemic time and thanks them for their amazing commitment over the past year!

145 apprentices complete their vocational training

145 apprentices successfully complete their vocational training in 18 different occupations within the Hirslanden Group. With 94 apprenticeships, health specialists lead the way. 

First knee prosthesis via the NextAR system

The augmented reality control system NextAR™ has been used for the first time at Clinique La Colline by Dr Marc Saudan.

Hirslanden steps up its commitment in the sports sector

Hirslanden becomes the Official Medical Partner of Swiss-Ski and henceforth closely involved in the medical care of athletes. In addition, Hirslanden partners with Mujinga Kambundji, who becomes World Indoor 60m Sprint Champion in March 2022. Leading Swiss football referees also opt for Hirslanden and Medbase as their medical supplier.

To the media releases:

«Learning together. Growing together.»

Hirslanden updates its visual communication for job-related concepts:  various fields of work are featured online, on posters and in videos. A unique design aspect is the combination of two motifs to form a single image. The message is clear: many different people work here towards the same goal: the well-being of our patients.

International Nurses Day – Executive Committee lends a hand

As part of International Nurses Day, Hirslanden launches the initiative, «A day in the life of a nurse». Members of the Group Executive Committee put on their healthcare uniforms for a day, shadow nurses and lend a helping hand. The following videos provide an insight into the day:

Opening of Prostate Cancer Centre Bern

Under the direction of urologists PD Dr med. Jörn Kamradt and Dr med. Martin Lüscher, the new Prostate Cancer Centre Bern opens at Hirslanden Salem-Spital in May 2021, which specialises in outpatient and inpatient treatment of prostate conditions to the highest medical standards.

Innovation@Hirslanden: Hirslanden app

In addition to chats with general practitioners, midwives and paediatricians, the Hirslanden app enables the issuing of e-prescriptions and referrals to specialists. The app service is being further developed to cover artificial insemination, orthopaedics, sports medicine as well as heart and breast health.

Thalasso bath exclusively in Grangettes

The thalasso bath is offered to mums and their babies during their stay. The maternity ward team has been trained by Ecole du Bien Naître.

Opening of the interventional cardiology centre

Two new catheterisation laboratories, one cardiac and the other hybrid, are accessible to a team of cardiologists from Clinique des Grangettes.

Opening of Messe Zurich COVID-19 vaccination centre

The Messe Zurich COVID-19 vaccination centre, one of the biggest vaccination centres in Switzerland, starts work. Up to 4 000 people can be vaccinated here every day.

Strong recruiting strategy and employer appeal

Hirslanden is named «Best Recruiter» and «Best Employer» in independent studies. While the «Best Recruiters» study measures the recruiting measures of top employers, the latter determines the best employers in Switzerland on the basis of surveys among employees.

Hirslanden establishes the «Quality of Life» foundation

The foundation's purpose is to promote and finance medical research and to advance innovative projects and measures to sustainably improve the quality of life of people throughout Switzerland. The foundation will also support projects dedicated to improving quality at the Hirslanden Group as well as projects focusing on training and further education in the healthcare professions.

Dominique Jäggi takes over as Hospital Manager of Klinik Im Park

The management of Klinik im Park changes on 1 April 2012: Dominique Jäggi takes over the management of the hospital.

The two hospitals in Lausanne to share a Hospital Manager

With effect from 1 April 2021, Hirslanden Lausanne is strengthening its regional network concept and is placing the two hospitals Bois-Cerf and Cecil under one management. The first Manager of the two hospitals will be Jean-Claude Chatelain. He will be followed on 1 September 2021 by Inka Moritz.

«Together we Test»: Several cantons commission Hirslanden for repetitive testing

The «Together we Test» platform developed by Hirslanden supports the cantons in the implementation of the extended testing strategy of the Federal Office of Public Health in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. The online platform makes single source repetitive testing possible for companies and schools. All the processes for the PCR saliva test are covered and the goods and services needed for the tests can be ordered via this platform. A number of partner companies are working together on this platform, acting as intermediaries.