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About Erasmus MC

We are Erasmus MC. Every day our staff, volunteers, and students work with dedication and commitment and are passionate about everything that we stand for.

Patient care
At Erasmus MC we work on top-clinical care for patients with complex care needs, rare diseases, or acute needs for care and treatment.

Education
We work on distinctive, high-quality education that appeals to ambitious, inquisitive, and talented students and addresses the healthcare issues of tomorrow.

Research
We also work on cutting-edge, world class international medical research that helps to understand, predict, treat, and prevent diseases and health conditions.

Valorization
Like every university medical center, our three core tasks at Erasmus MC are: patient care, education, and research. Valorization, which is the social or economic use of knowledge gained through research, is generally regarded as a fourth core task.

 

About Erasmus MC

Our mission statement and our vision

  • Our mission statement
    We are committed to achieving a healthy population and pursuing excellence in healthcare through research and teaching.
  • Our vision
    Erasmus MC is recognised as a leading innovator in healthcare.

Docter with female patient

Our three core values

  • Responsible
  • Connecting
  • Enterprising

Annual report and financial statements

History of Erasmus MC

1840: Rotterdam’s city architect, Willem Nicolaas Rose, is commissioned to build the city’s first hospital. The Coolsingel Hospital takes 11 years to complete. Its first director is a local physician called Bastiaan Molewater.

1863: Led by Dr Hendrik Willem De Monchy, seven respected local citizens decide to set up a children’s hospital. The building is located above a furniture store in Hoogstraat, the street now better known as the ‘Koopgoot’ or ‘the shopping gutter’.

1869: Queen Sophia donates 100 guilders and a sewing machine to the children’s hospital. The hospital is named after her in return.

1914: The Rotterdam Radiotherapy Institute is founded. A radiologist from Gouda called Daniel den Hoed is appointed as the institute’s director in 1940. Under his leadership, the institute evolves into an outstanding clinic that will later bear his name.

1940: The Coolsingel Hospital takes four hits during the German bombardment of Rotterdam. The building catches fire almost immediately and most of it is destroyed. Thanks to the presence of a number of facilities elsewhere, a new hospital can be built.

1950: The predecessor of the medical faculty, the Foundation for Higher Clinical Education, is founded. The foundation trains medical graduates from all over the Netherlands.

1961: The Dijkzigt Hospital, on the Land van Hoboken site, opens on 18 September. The hospital is named after the Van Hoboken family residence, a grand house which now houses the Natural History Museum.

1966: The Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences is founded by Professor Andries Querido on 7 October. 

1971: The Dijkzigt Hospital merges with the Sophia Children's Hospital to become the Rotterdam University Hospital. 

1973: Erasmus University Rotterdam is founded on 1 February. The medical faculty trains physicians and medical researchers, offers postgraduate courses and is involved in training programmes for medical specialists.

1982: Erasmus University Rotterdam launches a master’s degree in healthcare policy and management, under the aegis of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. The degree course is later renamed as Health Sciences, Healthcare Policy & Management.

1993: The oldest children’s hospital in the country moves to the Hoboken district of Rotterdam, where the Dijkzigt Hospital and the Faculty of Medicine are already located. A footbridge connects the two hospitals with the medical faculty.

1995: The Daniel den Hoed Clinic joins the Rotterdam University Hospital, which now consists of three partners.

1998: The dean of the Faculty of Medicine and the Executive Boards of Erasmus University Rotterdam and Rotterdam University Hospital meet on 7 October to discuss the formation of the Erasmus University Medical Centre. 

2002: The Erasmus MC is formally founded on 1 June. 

2016: The 50th anniversary of university hospital care in Rotterdam.

2018: King Willem-Alexander officially opens the new Erasmus MC building on 6 September.

Visit our special website (Dutch only) to discover our history and see what we have become today.

Organisation Erasmus MC

Governance

Governance is all about sound management, effective supervision and full accountability.

The UMC Governance Code, i.e. the governance code for university medical centres, was adopted on 1 January 2008. Although it is based on the governance code for the whole of the Dutch healthcare industry, it differs from the latter in a number of aspects. These changes were made in order to align it more closely with the specific characteristics of a university medical centre, including higher education, academic research, training and the related care services.

Both the industry-wide governance code and the UMC Governance Code are based on the principle of ‘comply or explain’. In other words, university medical centres must describe in their annual reports (see section 1.3 on page 5 of the UMC Governance Code) any instances in which they have not acted in accordance with the governance code and, if so, how and why.

Further information? 

You can download both the UMC Governance Code and the industry-wide governance code from www.nfu.nl (Dutch only).

The Executive Board

The Executive Board is made up of Stefan Sleijfer (chair and dean), Joke Boonstra (deputy chair), Paul Boomkamp (member) and Dirk Schraven (member).

Supervisory Board

What does the Supervisory Board do?

The Supervisory Board oversees the Executive Board, which in turn is responsible for the day-to-day management of the Erasmus MC. The Executive Board is accountable to the Supervisory Board for its actions.

These are some of the things that the Supervisory Board is required to approve:

  • the budget;
  • the annual accounts;
  • the annual report;
  • major investments;
  • management regulations.

The Supervisory Board also monitors compliance with legislation and advises the Executive Board on managerial issues. The Supervisory Board acts in accordance with the governance code for the Dutch healthcare industry. (Dutch only).

How are the members of the Supervisory Board appointed?

The chair and the members of the Supervisory Board are appointed for a four-year term of office. This period may be extended once only for another four years.

The members of the Supervisory Board are appointed by the Minister of Education, Culture, and Science acting on the recommendation of the Supervisory Board and in consultation with the Minister of Health, Welfare, and Sport.

Who are the members of the Supervisory Board?

  • Mr P.G. (Gijs) de Vries, chair 
  • Mevrouw dr. E.A. (Erica) Bakkum 
  • Prof.dr. M. (Mijntje) Lückerath- Rovers
  • R. (Roelof) Konterman
  • Drs. RA MGA J. (Jules) Verhagen

Contacting us

You can reach the Supervisory Board by phone at (010) 703 3930 or by email at secretariaat.rvt@erasmusmc.nl

Organisational chart

Erasmus MC

The organisational chart shows how the Erasmus MC is structured. Click here to download the full version of our organisational chart

Erasmus MC holding company

The share capital of our subsidiaries is owned by a parent company called Erasmus MC Holding B.V. View the chart showing the structure of the Erasmus MC group.

Equal opportunities for all

Gender equality is a core value of Erasmus MC. Erasmus MC is committed to promoting equality and preventing discrimination in all its operations. In our community we treat all of our members with respect. We do not condone inappropriate treatment, discrimination or harassment of its staff or students. We offer all our members a safe open environment with equal opportunities for all, irrespective of their gender, cultural background or religion. Equality contributes to the quality of everyday life for the diverse and multilingual Erasmus MC community.

Our strategy is in line with domestic and EU regulations and delivers on the gender equality Sustainable Development goals (SDG) by the United Nations. SDG 10 (reduced inequality) and SDG 5 (gender equality) are particularly relevant to our efforts to promote equality, diversity and inclusiveness. A special task force has been established dedicated to coordinate the realisation of the SDG at Erasmus MC.

Erasmus MC promotes the equal recruitment and selection of women and men to various positions. We provide equal pay for equal work, as well as the insurance of equal opportunities for career advancement at all levels. For more information, please visit the Working at Erasmus MC section of our website. Staff can find more detailed information on opportunities and procedures on our Intranet.

Teaching and research

Erasmus MC promotes diversity and inclusiveness in our medical teaching activities by creating a learning environment with respect for each individual’s unique background, contributions and opinions. To this end, we organise meetings and courses for and with students, teachers and researchers. Furthermore researchers are encouraged to include sex-and-gender aspects into their research questions where applicable. Moreover Erasmus MC works together with local and national stakeholders in creating a research environment that is as diverse as possible.

In order to advance the gender equality at Erasmus MC, a special Female Career Development Programme has been set up by HR commissioned by the Executive Board to assist female staff members, Moreover HR department support female academics in the VENA network (the female network at Erasmus MC for academics).

The Executive Board of Erasmus MC appointed a Chief Diversity Officer, prof. Hanneke Takkenberg. To stimulate diversity efforts and to coordinate and monitor the diversity efforts that are undertaken. Prof. Takkenberg communicates directly with the Executive Board, and is also part of the Talent & Innovation Committee(TIC)

A safe environment

Erasmus MC has drafted instructions for the prevention of inappropriate treatment and harassment. We do not tolerate abuses in any form, neither physically nor psychologically.

In the event that staff or students might have encountered undesirable conduct, including bullying, aggression, violence, intimidation, sexual harassment and discrimination, they may lodge a complaint, discuss the problem or conflict to one of the officers listed below:
ombudsman, confidential counsellors, a mediator and complaints committee.
Students may also benefit of the facilities offered by Erasmus University Rotterdam

 

Strategy

Our strategy

Erasmus MC has been setting out a five-year strategic plan, named Course, since 2003. Each edition of Course clearly sets out our ambitions in terms of providing patient care, teaching, training, and conducting research. In each of these core tasks we focus on the social impact and valorization of our ideas. In doing so, we take account of developments in our own organization as well as developments in the world around us.

You can read the strategy document here.

photo's Koers 23

Strategy23: Technology & Dedication

Logo Koers23Technology & Dedication are the two guiding principles underlying Strategy23 and are at the core of our goals. The word ‘dedication’ describes the way in which our staff perform their work, with time and consideration for their patients and each other, passion for scientific research and concern for the interests of their students. They do this against a backdrop of rapid changes in technology. Our strategic ambitions embrace both these aspects: people and technology, healthcare and innovation, and teamwork and impact.
Read the strategy document here.

Impact: the crux of Strategy23

We wish to have a social impact by championing a healthy society. This is our social purpose as a university medical center. This is the target towards which we will be working over the next few years. Strategy23 follows three distinct routes towards this target.

Positioning ourselves as a partner

We aspire to being a valued partner in all our collaborative efforts. Trust, interest and respect for each other’s input and expertise are key here. First and foremost we see and treat our patients as valuable partners in all our core activities. We are also an academic powerhouse shaping, leading and facilitating new regional, national and international partnerships and networks, and connecting the Rotterdam region with new developments, both in the Netherlands and further afield. We wish to be a driving force, strengthening and enriching existing partnerships and challenging our partners to seek the unexpected. 

We believe it is our social responsibility to take the lead in treating patients effectively (i.e. providing the right form of healthcare at the right time and place), in promoting health, in understanding, predicting and preventing disease through research, and in training the healthcare professionals of the future. These are all things we seek to do in conjunction with our partners.
We need to contribute to political and public debate and to be perceived as an established and reliable scientific authority on healthcare. We also wish to make effective use of scarce public funds and to help create an accessible, affordable and inclusive healthcare system.

Using technology to lead the way in innovation 

In the future, major innovations in health and healthcare will emerge at intersections between the biomedical and natural sciences, medicine, engineering and big data. These innovations will influence people’s views on health and disease, in terms of molecules and cells, but also in terms of individuals and populations as a whole. They will affect the way in which we organise our patient care, our scientific research and our teaching. Technology is becoming an increasingly important – and indeed crucial – part of our work. Against this background, we are seeking to become the top technical university medical center in the Netherlands. Operating in a unique setting means that the conditions are ideal for this. Firstly, Rotterdam — with its highly diverse population — is a city with pronounced ambitions in life sciences and health, and whose inhabitants are renowned around the country for their can-do mentality. Secondly, the southwest of the Netherlands is a large and diverse hinterland with some 4.5 million inhabitants, many hospitals, three universities (in Rotterdam, Leiden and Delft), as well as our subsidiary hospital in the province of Zeeland. Add into the mix our links with the European Commission in Brussels and our reputation for top-class research performed with long-term partners all over the world.

Focusing on our staff and internal organisation

The human aspect is the inextricable link between technology and health. Adopting a personal approach means fostering long-term relationships not just with our patients, but also with our staff, students and volunteers. Our aim is to offer the latter a pleasant and safe place in which to work, study and fulfil their ambitions. It also means that we wish to do our very best to help overcome the growing shortage of healthcare professionals. This is our responsibility, not just as a healthcare provider and Rotterdam’s biggest employer, but also as an innovator.

Advice and participation

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