The Chronicles of the Rudolfinerhaus

1875 Rudolfinerverein (Rudolfiner Society) founded by Gustav Jurié.
1879 The Society is newly constituted; the driving force is the surgeon Theodor Billroth. Count Hans Wilczek becomes the first president of the Rudolfiner Society, and Crown Prince Rudolf becomes its patron.
1880 The Society names itself “Rudolfiner Society for the Construction and Maintenance of a Pavilion Hospital for the Training of Nurses for the Sick and Wounded in Vienna”.
1881 The first nursing courses are held at the Vienna chamber of commerce.
1882 Founding of the Rudolfinerhaus; construction of a barracks with 20 beds. The first wounded are admitted. Billroth becomes director, his assistant Robert Gersuny becomes physician-in-chief and Primitive von Villa-Secca the head of nursing.
1883 Marie von Erlach becomes head of nursing.
1885 Opening of Pavilion “Rudolf”.
1891 The central building with operating room and day-clinic is completed.
1894 6 February, Theodor Billroth dies. Robert Gersuny becomes his successor as director.
1895 Pavilion “Billroth” is opened.
1902 Else Reichel takes on the position of head of nursing.
1903 Rudolfinerhaus nurses take on nursing care in some departments of the Karolinen-Kinderspital (Caroline Children’s Hospital).
1905 The utility building is opened.
1907 Pavilion “Wilczek” is completed.
1910 Nursing head Reichel leaves following her marriage to Prim. Dr. Moszkowicz. Her successor is Marie-Caroline Apór zu Altorja.
1912 Arrangement made with the Patriotic Society of Helpers of the Red Cross; nurses who can be spared are to be placed at the disposal of the Red Cross. Fourteen nurses are on duty serving in the Balkan war.
1914 Sudden death of nursing head Apór. She is followed by Annemarie Neipperg. Count Hans Wilczek resigns as president of the Rudolfiner Society, Count Dr. Jaroslav Thun-Hohenstein follows him in office. First state regulation of nursing training. The beginning of war postpones the reorganization of the school. The Patriotic Society of Helpers of the Red Cross of Lower Austria takes on the administration of the Rudolfinerhaus during the war; it becomes a military hospital. The number of beds is increased to 360 from 100. A lack of space limits the functioning of the nursing school. Many of the nurses carry out their work in the various scenes of war across the continent.
1918 At war’s end the house is in desolate condition. It is once again a civilian hospital. Annemarie Neipperg ends her work as head of nursing for health reasons and Alice Pietzcker becomes her successor.
1919 Free choice of physicians is introduced in “Care Class I and II”. A department of obstetrics is opened at Pavilion “Rudolf”. The school of nursing is given state approval.
1921 Prof. Dr. Anton von Eiselsberg becomes president of the Rudolfiner Society.
1923 Purchase of a house in Küb for a “Nurses’ Recuperation Home”.
1924 Director Gersuny dies; he is followed by Prof. Otto Frisch.
1934 Anna Schwarzenberg, a graduate of the nursing school, becomes managing secretary of the World Council of Nurses in Geneva.
1938 Hitler invades Austria. The Rudolfiner Society is disbanded, and the Rudolfinerhaus, which is incorporated into the German Red Cross (Deutsches Rotes Kreuz), is now called “DRK-Billroth Hospital”. Head of nursing Pietzcker flees from the Nazi Regime to Switzerland. Alba Alberti becomes head of nursing.
1939 Beginning of world war II. The “DRK-Billroth Hospital” becomes primarily a military hospital. The nurses are sent to diverse scenes of war. Head physician Prof. Frisch is removed from his position by the Nazi Regime.
1942 The “DRK-Billroth Nursing Staff” opens an infant and child nursing school at the Emil v. Behring Children’s Hospital (Caroline Children’s Hospital).
1945 15 March. A bomb attack kills 6 staff members of the Rudolfinerhaus, some of them during their attempt to save patients. The Rudofinerhaus is largely destroyed; the patients are transferred to other hospitals. 2 April. In the face of the Russian occupation nurses flee to Mehrerau near Bregenz in western Austria. Several nurses become prisoners of war. October. Reopening of a part of the Rudolfinerhaus. Fernanda Bianchi becomes head of nursing. The Rudolfiner Society constitutes itself anew with Hans Zacherl as president. As former German property, the Rudolfinerhaus is placed under public administration.
1948 The Rudolfinerhaus once again becomes the property of the Rudolfiner Society.
1949 Resignations of Hans Zacherl, president of the Rudolfiner Society, and Fernanda Bianchi, head of nursing. Otto Frisch becomes president, Alba Alberti again becomes head of nursing, and the surgeon Hans Winkler becomes director.
1956 Leopold Schönbauer becomes president of the Rudolfiner Society.
1958 A new school building is opened, which is financed by a campaign for donations led by the “Committee of Friends of the Rudolfiner Nurses”.
1960 Nursing head Alberti retires, Gertrude Finze follows her and holds the position until 1964.
1963 Herbert Kraus becomes president.
1964 Hedwig Strobl heads the nursing care service on an interim basis.
1967 Hedwig Kreuzer becomes head of nursing.
1972 Tassilo Antoine becomes president of the Rudolfiner Society. Head of nursing Kreuzer retires. The Rudolfinerhaus is in a financial and personnel crisis, and many nurses leave the house. The next two heads of nursing, Therese Bergmann and Maria Reitmeyer, give up after having made efforts to improve the situation.
1975 A completely new management is appointed. Dr. Kurt Grimm becomes president, the internist Dr. Osama Hamid the director, Elisabeth Seidl the head of nursing services. The following years are years of rebuilding and new construction in the institution. The nursing service is newly organized and internationally oriented.
1981 Dr. Josef Dézsy takes on the business management.
1989 Prof. Karl Fellinger becomes president of the Rudolfiner Society.
1992 The Rudolfinerhaus houses the first Austrian university institute (University of Linz) for nursing research up to 1999. The institute’s head is Dr. Elisabeth Seidl.
1995 Prof. Dr. Eduard Gitsch takes on the office of president.
1996 Dr. Elisabeth Seidl qualifies as a university lecturer in the field of nursing at the University of Linz. She is the first Austrian university lecturer in nursing.
1999 Director Primarius Dr. Hamid retires. Prof. DDr. Gerold Porenta takes on the medical directorship. Prof. Dr. Josef Dézsy becomes director and remains in the position until 2001.
2000 Mag. Silvia Kühne Ponesch becomes head of nursing services and director of the school.
2001 Prof. Dr. Michael Zimpfer, MBA, becomes the new president of the Rudolfiner Society.
2002 Dipl. KH-Bw. Peter Sloup (Accredited Hospital Business Manager) becomes the business director. Primarius Univ. Prof. Dr. Lothar Wicke becomes the new medical director.
2003 DGKS (RN) Erika Knett, MAS, becomes the new director of nursing services. Mag. Helga Schneider becomes the new director of the nursing school