Peter Eichenberger's untimely death is an indescribable loss that leaves us stunned. His enormous and valuable commitment, his energy, his always open door, always paired with his infectious zest for life and his willingness to laugh, will forever remain in our best memories. His work in our hospital will always be visible and tangible.
We offer our heartfelt condolences to his family and loved ones. Our thoughts are with them.
The obituary was written by Raymond Cron, Chairman of the Board of Directors of St. Claraspital AG.
His glow has gone out
Peter Eichenberger impressed me with the way he approached people. The way he won them over with his energy, his radiance and his smile was extraordinary.
I met Peter Eichenberger myself at a job interview a good 18 years ago. Hansruedi Widmer, the Chairman of the Board of Directors at the time, and I immediately realised that Peter would be the right and ideal boss for the Claraspital. From the very beginning, Peter and I worked together as partners. Together we endeavoured to lead the hospital into the future - he from the helm, me in the background.
Peter was solution-orientated and pragmatic. He was politically experienced and had an excellent network. With his open manner, he was able to find solutions in many situations and win over his counterparts. Peter was a huge stroke of luck for the Claraspital. He played a key role in shaping the hospital's strategic transformation, which involved maintaining its function as a city hospital while focusing on the abdomen and tumour and practising cutting-edge medicine. Under his leadership, research was intensified and the hospital's infrastructure was completely modernised. He is the inventor of the CURA meeting centre, a contact point where people with a chronic illness can find low-threshold support.
People at the centre, that was typical of Peter. He was interested in people. Someone from the hospital once told me: "I think he knows the name of every single one of us." On 23 December, he would go on tour from department to department to personally wish everyone he met happy holidays. The same on the first working day in January. His staff parties, at which Peter always gave his speeches freely and often even in verse, were legendary.
"Organising something together with others gives me energy," Peter once explained. And he organised so many things: In addition to his great professional commitment and his involvement in associations, Peter was sporty, cycled to work, consistently went jogging twice a week at lunchtime and skied in winter. Music was also his passion. He played the clarinet and saxophone in Pat's Big Band and, as president of "Em Bebbi sy Jazz", helped to shape Basel's culture. But above all, his family was important to him, I always felt that.
At the end of 2021, Peter signalled that he wanted to hand over the operational management of the hospital. Together, we developed a management model in which he would have acted as Delegate of the Board of Directors. Unfortunately, he was no longer really able to fulfil this role due to his illness. As he did not leave Claraspital with this new role, but was promoted, we never officially said goodbye to him and honoured him properly. For me, it was a valuable privilege to have been able to work closely with Peter for so many years.
Peter's death, and even his illness, leave me stunned and are a bitter loss for me. I have lost a dialogue partner and a friend. When I think how great the loss is for me and the whole hospital, how much greater the loss must be for his family. I would like to express my deepest sympathy to his wife and two sons, as well as his father and siblings. They are all in our thoughts. Peter's shining eyes will remain with me in the future. We will all remember him forever as a great person.