Jordan Ellis
The hospital at Auschwitz was established in June 1940, several days after the arrival of the first transport of Polish political prisoners. The hospital was expanded as the number of prisoners rose, and new hospitals were opened in the main camp and Birkenau between 1942 and 1944. The hospitals were used to contain epidemics like typhus and dysentery, which could otherwise spread to the SS ranks or civilian population. They were also used to treat prisoners who seemed likely to return to labour soon, while the gravely ill continued to be sent to their deaths.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Purpose | To contain epidemics like typhus and dysentery that would otherwise decimate the slave population |
| Founding | An infirmary was set up in the second half of June 1940 |
| First patients | Badly beaten or near collapse due to "sport" and other exercises |
| Structure | Included a Department V—camp medical service, headed by the garrison physician (SS-Standortärzte) |
| Expansion | New hospitals opened in the main camp and Birkenau from 1942 to 1944 |
| Role | Reducing the prisoner death rate for those likely to return to labour; for the gravely ill, they were instruments of annihilation |
| Heads of hospitals | Included SS physicians Max Popiersch, Siegfried Schwela, Oskar Dienstbach, Kurt Uhlenbroock, and Eduard Wirths |
| Conditions | Filled with fleas, lice, and rats; patients received smaller food rations and suffered from thirst |
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What You'll Learn
- Hospitals were used to contain epidemics like typhus and dysentery
- They provided a false sense of security for prisoners
- The SS wanted to decrease the death rate among prisoners who could return to labour
- The SS wanted to maintain hygiene and sanitation in the camps
- The first patients were prisoners who had been beaten or were near collapse
Hospitals were used to contain epidemics like typhus and dysentery
The hospital at Auschwitz was established in June 1940, several days after the arrival of the first transport of Polish political prisoners. The first patients were prisoners who had been badly beaten or were near collapse due to the brutal "sports" exercises that characterised the preliminary quarantine period. The hospital was expanded as more transports arrived and the number of patients increased. The final form of the hospital in the Auschwitz I main camp included Block 19, the Schonungsblock for convalescent prisoners; Block 20, the contagious diseases block; Block 21, the surgical block; and Block 28, the internal medicine block.
The hospitals at Auschwitz were used to contain epidemics like typhus and dysentery, which could have otherwise decimated the slave population and spread to the civilian population or the SS ranks. The SS began taking steps in the second half of 1942 to decrease the death rate, and camp hospitals were assigned the role of reducing prisoner deaths, specifically among those who seemed likely to return to labour soon. The hospitals were also used to give prisoners a false sense of security, making them easier to control.
However, for the gravely ill, the camp hospitals continued to be instruments of annihilation. Patients in the hospitals received smaller food rations than prisoners with work assignments, and they suffered from thirst, especially those with fevers. The hospital premises were infested with fleas, lice, and rats, which attacked the unconscious or weakest prisoners and gnawed on the limbs of the dead.
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They provided a false sense of security for prisoners
The hospitals at Auschwitz were used by the Nazis to contain epidemics like typhus and dysentery that would otherwise decimate the slave population. The SS began taking various steps in the second half of 1942 to decrease the death rate, and camp hospitals were assigned the role of reducing the prisoner death rate—in relation to prisoners who seemed likely to return to labour in a short time. The hospitals were also used to let prisoners get a feeling of normality, creating a false sense of security and less trouble to put people on trains.
The extensive network of camp hospitals at Auschwitz was founded with an infirmary set up in the second half of June 1940, several days after the arrival of the first transport of Polish political prisoners. The first patients were prisoners who had been badly beaten or who were near the point of collapse due to the murderous exercises. The hospital expanded as more transports arrived and the number of patients rose. In its final form in the Auschwitz I main camp, it comprised Block 19, the Schonungsblock for convalescent prisoners; Block 20, the contagious diseases block; Block 21, the surgical block; and Block 28, the internal medicine block.
The garrison physician (SS-Standortärzte) was the head of the camp medical service (Department V) and cooperated closely with the camp commandant, advising him on medical, sanitation, and hygiene matters. At various times, the heads of the camp “hospitals” included SS physicians Max Popiersch, Siegfried Schwela, Oskar Dienstbach, Kurt Uhlenbroock, and Eduard Wirths in the Auschwitz main camp; Erwin von Helmersen, Heinz Thilo, and Rudolf Horstman in the Birkenau men’s camp; and Werner Rohde, Fritz Klein, and Hans Wilhelm König in the Birkenau women’s camp.
While the hospitals at Auschwitz may have provided some level of medical care and a sense of normality for prisoners, it is important to note that they were also places of immense suffering and cruelty. Patients received smaller food rations than prisoners with work assignments, and all of them, especially those with fever, suffered from a lack of water. In addition, fleas and lice filled the hospital premises, and rats prowled the Birkenau hospitals, attacking the unconscious or weakest prisoners. For the gravely ill, the camp hospitals continued to be instruments of annihilation.
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The SS wanted to decrease the death rate among prisoners who could return to labour
The foundation of the extensive network of camp hospitals at Auschwitz was an infirmary set up in June 1940, several days after the arrival of the first transport of Polish political prisoners. The first patients were prisoners who had been badly beaten or who were near collapse due to the murderous exercises that were characteristic of the preliminary quarantine period. As more transports arrived and the number of patients rose, the hospital expanded. In its final form in the Auschwitz I main camp, it included a block for convalescent prisoners, a block for contagious diseases, a surgical block, and a block for internal medicine.
At various times, the heads of the camp “hospitals” included SS physicians Max Popiersch, Siegfried Schwela, Oskar Dienstbach, Kurt Uhlenbroock, and Eduard Wirths in the Auschwitz main camp. The garrison physician (SS-Standortärzte) was head of the camp medical service. He cooperated closely with the camp commandant, advising him on medical, sanitation, and hygiene matters.
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The SS wanted to maintain hygiene and sanitation in the camps
The SS took steps to decrease the death rate in the second half of 1942, as the labour of prisoners became increasingly important to the German wartime economy. The camp hospitals were assigned the role of reducing the prisoner death rate, specifically for those who seemed likely to return to labour in a short time. However, for the gravely ill, the camp hospitals continued to serve as instruments of annihilation.
The SS gave the camp at Auschwitz the same administrative structure as other concentration camps, including a Department V for camp medical services. The garrison physician, an SS doctor, headed this department and advised the camp commandant on medical, sanitation, and hygiene matters. The first patients in the camp hospital were Polish political prisoners who had been badly beaten or were near collapse due to the harsh conditions of their preliminary quarantine. As the number of prisoners rose, the hospital expanded to include blocks for contagious diseases, surgery, and internal medicine. The heads of these camp hospitals included SS physicians such as Max Popiersch, Siegfried Schwela, and Josef Mengele.
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The first patients were prisoners who had been beaten or were near collapse
The first patients at the Auschwitz hospital were prisoners who had been badly beaten or were near collapse. These prisoners were subjected to "murderous exercises" during the preliminary quarantine period, which were characteristic of the camp. The hospital was founded in the second half of June 1940, several days after the arrival of the first transport of Polish political prisoners. The SS gave the camp the same administrative structure as other concentration camps, including a medical service department headed by a garrison physician.
The hospital was expanded as the number of patients grew, and by its final form, it included blocks for convalescent prisoners, contagious diseases, surgery, and internal medicine. The expansion of the hospital coincided with the expansion of Auschwitz from 1942 to 1944, during which new hospitals were opened in the main camp for Soviet POWs and women prisoners. The camp hospitals were assigned the role of reducing the prisoner death rate, specifically for those who seemed likely to return to labour in a short time.
The hospitals were also used to contain epidemics like typhus and dysentery, which the Nazis feared would spread to their ranks or the civilian population. However, the conditions in the hospitals were poor, with fleas, lice, and rats infesting the premises. Patients received small food rations and suffered from thirst, especially those with fevers. The hospitals, therefore, served a dual purpose of containing epidemics and reducing the death rate among prisoners who could still work, while also contributing to the annihilation of those who were gravely ill.
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Frequently asked questions
The SS set up an infirmary at Auschwitz in June 1940, several days after the arrival of the first transport of Polish political prisoners. The hospital was expanded as the number of prisoners rose.
The hospital was used to contain epidemics like typhus and dysentery that would otherwise decimate the slave population.
At various times, the heads of the camp hospitals included SS physicians Max Popiersch, Siegfried Schwela, Oskar Dienstbach, Kurt Uhlenbroock, and Eduard Wirths.
The hospital premises were filled with fleas and lice, and rats prowled the Birkenau hospitals. Patients received smaller food rations than prisoners with work assignments and suffered from thirst.
