The future of the St. Josef Clinic in Schweinfurt remains uncertain. The order of the “Congregation of the Sisters of the Redeemer” announced last October that it could no longer maintain the loss-making house. Now the city of Schweinfurt, which was initially seen as the likely savior of the clinic, has also declined. The reason: The city also does not see itself in a position to bear the costs. The city of Schweinfurt cannot take on the “incalculable risks of such a large project” alone, said Mayor Sebastian Remelé.
This ends a reform process at the Schweinfurt clinics that basically started in an exemplary manner. Last year, they tried to coordinate their work in line with the reform planned by Health Minister Karl Lauterbach: daily care for the population should take place in the smaller St. Josef down in the city center, and major operations and births should take place on the hill in the municipal Leopoldina Hospital. Initially there was talk of a cooperation between the two houses and later the takeover of St. Josef. Those involved in the traffic light coalition and also the Free State of Bavaria bitterly accuse the fact that none of this is working. The federal government failed to set up a transformation process in a timely manner that would also finance the desired restructuring of the hospital landscape. And the Bavarian Ministry of Health also promised no support beyond the usual funding. The order must now look for another sponsor who can take over from St. Joseph.