Since 1879, under the guiding principle of “making people strong for life”, the Marburg-based St. Elisabeth-Verein has been active in child, youth, family and elderly welfare as well as social psychiatry. Named after St. Elisabeth, who founded and financed a hospital in Marburg in the 13th century, caring for the sick and poor there herself, the organization is a member of the social welfare organization of Germany’s Protestant churches, Diakonie. St. Elisabeth-Verein sets an example for the accompaniment and care of children, young people, the mentally ill and the elderly. In their work, which requires direct interaction, the organization’s employees are unable to maintain the protective distance from other people that is actually necessary now, during the corona pandemic.
CSL Behring in Marburg has now donated 5,000 COVID-19 rapid tests to the organization to make its work with the people it cares for safer. The donation is greatly important to St. Elisabeth-Verein. “We depend on self-tests, especially in our outpatient teams, the foster families and the family integrative groups,” says Matthias Bohn, board member of the organization. The public test stations alone, which are usually located in the cities, are not sufficient as a testing option for the organization’s employees, who are active in remote locations due to their decentralized work.
Donations like these mean that the pedagogical and support services do not need to be limited to such a great extent. “We want and need to provide our colleagues, but also, of course, all the children, young people, families and elderly people who we take care of, the greatest possible protection.”
“We are pleased to be able to support the important work of this welfare organization in our region with this donation,” says Katrin Schmidt from the Marburg Pandemic Team during the symbolic handover of the donation. The donation is another example of CSL Behring's lived values: saving lives and protecting people's health.
