Something special is happening on a postage stamp in the heart of Rotterdam.
Two years ago, the new Erasmus MC building was erected there. It took twenty years of work. In the eight-part series Heart of Rotterdam, starting Tuesday on Rijnmond, you can see how Erasmus MC has grown into one of the most important places in the city.
A 120 meter high tower now graces the skyline of Rotterdam. The tower is only the beginning of a visionary project that will take place over the next fifteen years on the same postage stamp: the Erasmus MC Campus. One more square meter will be erected to house medical-technological innovation and entrepreneurship.
What do we really know about all that is taking place in the heart of the city? What is already happening in the area of innovation, and where will the new Erasmus MC Campus soon be built? In the first episode of The Heart of Rotterdam, Ernst Kuipers takes you through the hospital. “We want to be the first technical university medical center in the Netherlands. That may sound cold and not human, but our core values focus very much on the human aspect and communication. To provide good care, you have to innovate,” Kuipers says. That is why Erasmus MC collaborates with TU Delft and Erasmus University.
Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb talks about his experience with Erasmus MC. “Unfortunately, I have also been there several times as a patient, and when you see what wonderful care is provided there,” says the mayor. “I am sure that Rotterdammers are really proud of Erasmus MC. One critical point that Rotterdammers have about Erasmus MC: the parking fee.”
Furthermore, top scientist Miao Ping Chien shows her self-designed microscope that she uses daily in the fight against cancer. In the section “Meanwhile on the construction site”, experienced demolition worker Marloes Janssen gives a tour of the abandoned Dijkzig hospital.
The Heart of Rotterdam can be seen the next eight Tuesdays at 17:34 on TV Rijnmond with a repeat every hour thereafter. Watch the first episode below.
