University Hospital Zurich

University Hospital Zurich is a major public university hospital in Switzerland. It is located in the city of Zurich and mainly serves the canton of Zurich, but also treats patients from across Switzerland and abroad. The Canton of Zurich owns the hospital and works very closely with the University of Zurich. Together with the university and with ETH Zurich, it combines patient care, education, and research. Medical students, nurses, and many other health professionals receive training there. At the same time, researchers test new treatments and study diseases in real clinical settings. In its current form, University Hospital Zurich has evolved over more than a century from the former Cantonal Hospital into a modern university hospital. The main buildings are situated close to the old town and the university district on the Zürichberg hillside. Over time, new buildings and centers have been added, including specialized institutes, outpatient centers, and research facilities. Older wards have been gradually renovated, and several new projects are underway to modernize operating theatres, intensive care units, and diagnostic areas. It is one of the largest university hospitals in Switzerland. It has many beds and thousands of employees, including doctors, nurses, therapists, researchers, and technical staff. Most patients come from the Zurich region for general and specialized care. However, people with rare or highly complex diseases are also referred from other cantons and countries, as the hospital offers highly specialized services not widely available elsewhere. Many departments run specialized centers, for example, in heart and vascular medicine, cancer, neurology and neurosurgery, transplantation, intensive and emergency care, and complex surgery. The facility covers nearly all primary medical specialties in adult medicine and offers a wide range of interdisciplinary centers. Several units serve as national or international reference centers for specific rare conditions or highly specialized procedures. Because of its size and its strong links to academic research, the hospital plays a key role in clinical studies, medical innovation, and international collaborations. New diagnostic methods and therapies are often introduced there early, before they become standard practice in other hospitals. Together with the University of Zurich and other partners, University Hospital Zurich helps develop new ways to diagnose, treat, and prevent disease, while educating the next generation of health professionals and providing comprehensive, highly specialized patient care.