“Hats off to Your Work!”

It’s a cold, but sunny February morning in Berlin that sees a patient group make the trip from Leipzig in Saxony up to Berlin to visit BIOTRONIK’s headquarters and factory. The mood is lively, with employees just as enthused as visitors. 

Starting off with coffee and tea in a relaxed atmosphere, employees greet the patients, who have made the morning train trip up from Leipzig to see firsthand how their own implanted devices are made and function. Some visitors have also brought family members with them to find out how they can best lend their Many patients have brought questions with them. “Does my ICD beep when the battery is low?” asks one. “Can I still visit the sauna with my ICD?” asks another. “How can I figure out if my ICD will work with an MRI machine?” - and that’s just to start. 

“This visit showed us how many practical questions patients have. Naturally we’re very happy to provide information. We can offer a lot during patient visits, for both patients, their families, and others who support them,” says Jacqueline Brunn, Patient Communications Manager at BIOTRONIK. 

How long does it take to make and ICD and what quality control steps are necessary? The visiting patients discovered the answers to these questions firsthand while touring BIOTRONIK’s production floor and having face-to-face conversations with production teams.  

For BIOTRONIK employee Yuliya Marx, it was a memorable experience: “It makes me very happy to speak directly with patients. I was especially interested to hear about the experience of wearing an implant and how it makes people feel. I work with devices every day, and this is such an important perspective to understand – and I’ve only just now gotten the chance to hear about it firsthand,” says the Production Manufacturing Support Trainer, who has worked for BIOTRONIK for 15 years and is currently on track to become a plant operator. 

“I’ve had this ICD so long I don’t even notice it anymore,” said patient Reinhold Krause, who received his first BIOTRONIK implant in 2011 and attended the visit  with his wife. “The remote support with Home Monitoring makes me feel particularly safe when traveling.” 

“Many patients have been wearing their ICD for years, but new patients can feel a bit anxious at first and it helps them to talk with other patients. As a regional group, we’re well-positioned to help,” said Peter Meissner, speaker for the Leipzig and area group since 2011, who has had his own ICD since 2008. “With my work , I hope we can give new patients some reassurance and I’m happy to share my own experience for that,” said the 65 year-old. “My ICD has saved my life 12 times already – and I’m very thankful for that.” In addition to regular group meetings at the Leipzig Heart Center, the group organizes regular sessions on exercise, movement, nutrition, travel, and medication. 

This visit is the first of many that are planned. “We’re very pleased about the high quality standards and the technical know-how we see here, and to see with our own eyes, how these lifesavers are made. Getting to chat to the people who actually make them was a unique experience,” said Leipziger Horst Kämpfer. “Hats off to your work!” The fact that BIOTRONIK is a global firm that makes its products in Germany made a big impression on the group as well. 

“It’s very gratifying for us to see the patients getting so much out of their time with us. Because of the pandemic, we’ve not been able to welcome patient groups onsite for two years. We’re very happy to be starting up with patient visits again, given how much communicating with them informs our work,” says Christoph Dölitzsch, BIOTRONIK Team Lead for Patient Experience. 

Are you a patient that would like to visit BIOTRONIK? Please let us know here: patienten@biotronik.de