ZONDEK
Arzt Am Urban
1. The Krankenhaus Am Urban, 1900
2. Hermann Zondek
3. Famous patients
4. Expulsion, 1933
5. In exile
6. A new beginning
7. The Urban Krankenhaus today
The Krankenhaus Am Urban, 1900
Established in June 1890, the Hospital Am Urban was one of Berlin’s most modern hospitals. From the very beginning, it was considered an important local hospital. Many renowned doctors worked here including Albert Fraenkel and Werner Körte, who have streets in Kreuzberg named after them. Alfred Döblin, author of “Berlin Alexanderplatz”, was also a doctor at Urban. A lesser-known name is Hermann Zondek. He became medical director in the 1920s.
Hermann Zondek
"I would probably describe the 'Urban years' as the busiest, most physically and mentally demanding, but also the most satisfying of my life."
Hermann Zondek was one of the most respected doctors in Germany in the 1920s. He was born in Poznan (now Poland) in 1887 and had five siblings. He originally wanted to be a rabbi, but eventually studied medicine and specialized in endocrinology. Under his leadership, the hospital became an important centre for hormone research in Germany. Two of his brothers, Bernhard and Samuel Zondek, were also doctors in Berlin. Bernhard Zondek developed the world’s first pregnancy test in 1927.
Famous patients
"We sat in silence at the bedside of the patient, whose condition was visibly deteriorating. Kraus sensed my emotion. He touched my shoulder and said: 'I feel for you. You are losing a great friend. It’s an even greater loss for Germany, and most of all for German Jewry. It is dying this night. Later, when the wave of destruction swept over German Jews, I often thought of the prophetic words of old Kraus and the cruel truth they expressed."
Hermann Zondek had numerous famous patients, including the German Foreign Minister Gustav Stresemann, Reichstag President Paul Löbe, Reich Chancellor Kurt von Schleicher and the artist Charlotte Berend-Corinth. Zondek was close friends with Stresemann. When Stresemann was seriously ill, Zondek accompanied him to a conference in France in 1928, where Stresemann signed the Briand-Kellogg Pact, an important anti-war treaty. When he died a year later, Zondek and his colleague Friedrich Kraus were at his side.
Expulsion, 1933
"I cannot describe the feelings that moved me that night and in the days and weeks that followed. A past lay behind me. It seemed to me like a colourful mosaic made up of countless pieces. Clinical work in large hospitals, scientific research work, numerous friendships, an extraordinarily large circle of patients from all walks of life, right up to the highest echelons of political, military and cultural life - all of this had suddenly become unreal, had dissolved into nothing."
The Nazi rise to power in 1933 marked a dark turning point - also for the hospital. On 11 March 1933, the SA, the paramilitary organisation of the National Socialists, occupied the hospital. As a Jew, Zondek was banned from the building. His car was confiscated and used to transport Jewish colleagues away. They were severely mistreated in a detention centre. During the Nazi era, terrible crimes were committed in the hospital, including compulsory sterilisations, forced abortions and the exploitation of forced labourers.
In exile
"Everything seemed contrary to our continental habits. The eating habits, the quality of the furniture, the house construction, the heating, the social forms - nothing was the same as what we had known before."
Hermann Zondek fled to Switzerland with his brother Samuel on the day of his dismissal. Shortly afterwards, they travelled on to Great Britain. The two brothers found work in a hospital in Manchester. Since their German qualifications were not recognized, they had to attend medical courses. Even today, qualifications are often not recognized between countries. In 1934, Hermann Zondek emigrated to Palestine with his wife Elly and their children Birgit and Bernd. Elly passed away a few years later. Despite many invitations from friends and colleagues in Berlin, Zondek never returned.
A new beginning
"My patients came from Transjordan, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Cyprus, Greece, Turkey, even India and Abyssinia."
In Jerusalem, Hermann Zondek was able to resume his medical career. His ambition was to ensure that everyone in the region received good medical care. He ran a clinic and treated patients from various countries, including members of the Jordanian and Egyptian royal families. "I had become a sought-after specialist in the Middle East," wrote Zondek in his memoirs. He also treated the family of Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie I. Hermann Zondek passed away in Jerusalem in 1979, leaving behind a significant legacy in medical research. Thanks to his second wife Gerda Zondek, some of his personal belongings from Berlin are now displayed at the International Holocaust Memorial at Yad Vashem.
The Krankenhaus Am Urban today
After World War II, the hospital was rebuilt and expanded. The new building, designed by Hans Poelzig and opened in 1970, is now a protected historical monument. Today, the Vivantes Klinikum Am Urban provides comprehensive care for people from all cultures and backgrounds. It has 13 medical departments and one of the largest emergency rooms in Berlin. The 1,450 staff members, including 300 doctors and 740 nurses, care for approximately 70,000 patients annually. Nearly one hundred years after Hermann Zondek, the hospital is managed by Managing Director Pia Gabel, Nursing Director Jeanette Liersch, and Medical Director Prof. Dr. Ahmed Magheli.