Frans Marie Joseph de Wever (29 January 1869, in
Nuth
Nuth (; li, Nut ) is a village and was a municipality in the province of Limburg, situated in the southern Netherlands. In January 2019, the municipality merged with Schinnen and Onderbanken to form Beekdaelen.
The village of Nuth has 4,595 inha ...
– 9 September 1940, in
Heerlen
Heerlen (; li, Heële ) is a city and a municipality in the southeast of the Netherlands. It is the third largest settlement proper in the province of Limburg. Measured as municipality, it is the fourth municipality in the province of Limburg.
...
) was a Dutch
general practitioner, municipal doctor, rail doctor, mining doctor, and
hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...
founder.
[Hendriks, J., & Brun, S. (1979). 75 Jaar De Wever-Ziekenhuis Heerlen. Heerlen: De Wever-Ziekenhuis Heerlen][Wolf, R. (2004). Mijn Ziekenhuis; 100 jaar ziekenhuiszorg in Parkstad Limburg. Heerlen: Bureau PR Atrium MC]
Early years in Heerlen
After graduating as a medical doctor, de Wever settled in
Heerlen
Heerlen (; li, Heële ) is a city and a municipality in the southeast of the Netherlands. It is the third largest settlement proper in the province of Limburg. Measured as municipality, it is the fourth municipality in the province of Limburg.
...
in 1897
(some sources say 1896
) on the urge of
mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
and
pharmacist
A pharmacist, also known as a chemist (Commonwealth English) or a druggist (North American and, archaically, Commonwealth English), is a healthcare professional who prepares, controls and distributes medicines and provides advice and instructi ...
Charles de Hesselle (a colleague of de Wever's father, who was a pharmacist in
Nuth
Nuth (; li, Nut ) is a village and was a municipality in the province of Limburg, situated in the southern Netherlands. In January 2019, the municipality merged with Schinnen and Onderbanken to form Beekdaelen.
The village of Nuth has 4,595 inha ...
).
He took over the practice of
Karel Winckebach (one of the founders of
cardiology
Cardiology () is a branch of medicine that deals with disorders of the heart and the cardiovascular system. The field includes medical diagnosis and treatment of congenital heart defects, coronary artery disease, heart failure, valvular heart d ...
).
In the early years he made use of
horse and carriage
]
A horse and buggy (in American English) or horse and carriage (in British English and American English) refers to a light, simple, two-person carriage of the late 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries, drawn usually by one or sometimes by two h ...
to serve his patients, but in November 1902 a
car
A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods.
The year 1886 is regarded as ...
was used (made by
Cudell
The Cudell was a German car made from 1898 to 1908. It was made in Aachen until 1905, and thenceforth in Berlin.
Max Cudell founded the company in 1898 to manufacture licensed De Dion-Bouton vehicles. The original 3-wheelers were succeeded by ...
from the nearby city of
Aachen
Aachen ( ; ; Aachen dialect: ''Oche'' ; French and traditional English: Aix-la-Chapelle; or ''Aquisgranum''; nl, Aken ; Polish: Akwizgran) is, with around 249,000 inhabitants, the 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, and the 28th- ...
).
A hospital
With mining operations expanding in Heerlen, too many patients were being wounded for de Wever to treat alone. These patients all had to be transported over poor roads to the
Calvariënberg, a
hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...
in
Maastricht
Maastricht ( , , ; li, Mestreech ; french: Maestricht ; es, Mastrique ) is a city and a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital and largest city of the province of Limburg. Maastricht is located on both sides of the ...
. De Wever felt a hospital was needed in Heerlen.
There were already two
hydrotherapy
Hydrotherapy, formerly called hydropathy and also called water cure, is a branch of alternative medicine (particularly naturopathy), occupational therapy, and physiotherapy, that involves the use of water for pain relief and treatment. The term ...
centers, called
Mariabad and
St. Josephs Heilbronn.
After being declined by the Heilbronn to start a hospital, de Wever approached
monseigneur
Monseigneur (plural: Messeigneurs or Monseigneurs) is an honorific in the French language, abbreviated Mgr., Msgr. In English use it is a title before the name of a French prelate, a member of a royal family or other dignitary.
Monsignor is b ...
Joseph Savelberg
Peter Joseph Savelberg (10 February 1827, Heerlen – 11 February 1907, Heerlen) was a Roman-Catholic priest and congregation founder (missionary).
Biography
Peter Savelberg attended school in Heerlen and after that at Rolduc (1843 to 1845) ...
,
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
rector
Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to:
Style or title
*Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations
*Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
and founder of the sister congregation that ran Mariabad.
Although Savelberg was at first reluctant, presumably because his congregation was founded under the condition that it would not far in the other congregations' works.
[Philips, R. (1980). Gezondheidszog in Limburg. Groei en acceptatie ban de gezondheidsvoorzieningen 1850–1940. Assen] But the idea of a hospital set up near the mines, with the possibilities of
Protestant
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
doctors and nurses, convinced Savelberg to co-found the hospital.
In September 1904 Savelberg blessed the hospital, built in the garden of Mariabad, near the corner of Akerstraat and Putgraaf. Presumably the hospital was named Maria Hilf Spital. There were two wards (one for men and one for women) with ten beds each, two rooms per ward, one operating room, and a kitchen.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wever, Frans De
1869 births
1940 deaths
Dutch general practitioners
People from Heerlen
People from Nuth