So that he can quickly see all the facilities at a glance in which the 1,400 employees of the non-profit hospital company (GKG) and its subsidiary are employed, udo kunzmann has marked them on a map of the district in the office. The 46-year-old comes from the district of forchheim and has been acting as the new managing director of the GKG since the beginning of the year, succeeding monika rother, who headed the GKG for two years. Previously, manfred fischer was their managing director for 20 years. GKG emerged from the former, loss-making district hospitals in scheblitz and burgebrach.
In allusion to this, kunzmann admits that last year was the first time that the company was in the red again. The reason for this is the considerable investment in the construction projects. The rest of the work will be completed this year "but we’re in the black, definitely". Then he shifts the focus to employees. These are important to him, and: pay is not everything "it’s the whole package that counts", he finds and has already put new things into it here.
Grafenberger studied business administration in erlangen and subsequently served for eleven years as deputy head of finance at the university hospital in erlangen. He then moved to erlangen forest hospital, where he was to remain as managing director for six years. During this time he was also responsible for two senior facilities. Although erlangen had 290 beds, in contrast to the GKG clinics in burgebrach and scheblitz, which had a total of 260 beds, there was no need to rebuild. But kunzmann is attracted to the wider variety of his new job in the district of bamberg, especially since he was looking for a new challenge in his job. In his private life, he probably also needs it: the married man from grafenberg jogs regularly, loves skiing and is a passionate mountain biker. He has just completed his first alpine crossing. On the one hand, sport clears his head, on the other hand, it gives him the best ideas, says the father of two children.
Inauguration coming up
Back to the challenges at the GKG. Kunzmann does not need to rebuild the car at the moment. On the contrary, he will be able to inaugurate the new intensive care unit in scheblitz this spring. But even without construction projects, kunzmann sees many areas where he would like to get involved. He mentions the expansion of networking in the outpatient area, which he finds very exciting. There is a lot to do in the areas of orthopedics and psychosomatics due to the relocation from kutzenberg to scheblitz and burgebrach, respectively, since the GKG is taking over some of the work here. Kunzmann would like to expand geriatrics, especially the care facility for dementia patients. Kunzmann has already reorganized the administrative structure. For example, in addition to a new commercial manager, there is now a separate operations manager at the steigerwaldklinik in burgebrach. Of course, the strategic development has to continue. Otherwise, says kunzmann when asked, they see themselves as a complement to the maximum care provider, i.E. The bamberg hospital. Scheblitz and burgebrach provide basic and regular medical care.
Compared to a large hospital with many and large departments, the strength of small hospitals lies in their manageability, shorter distances and smaller departments, which means that patients can be cared for more individually. "The personal is the strong", kunzmann is certain.
It is also important for him to be close to the employees. In the past few months, kunzmann has visited all the GKG facilities, got an impression of what they look like, and found out where the staff’s shoes are hot. A hotspot: the duty roster reliability. People should not always have to live in the knowledge that they are actually off duty, but that a call could come in at any time and they would have to step in. Here in scheblitz they are currently in a test phase in the intensive care department agreed with the works council. Keyword standby service. This means that certain employees are on standby, so to speak, which is also remunerated. So not everyone always has to expect a phone call.
Until the end of the year
This trial will run until the end of the year, but the feedback so far has been positive throughout. In nursing, the use of foreign specialists, as was the case last year with serbs, is an approach, but not the only solution. The profession as a whole must become more attractive, kunzmann demands. He considers GKG to be an attractive employer. He would like to work further on this. Recognition for employees is part of the job for him, as is accommodating in other areas. For the managing director, it is important that the employees identify with GKG and are satisfied. What about your own satisfaction? "I feel good when I look out of my window and see the giechburg, what more could I want?."