Guido A. Zäch (1935–2026)

Guido A. Zäch had a stately appearance that earned him respect and a smile that enchanted everybody. He remained a modest man throughout his life who always found a connection to anyone he spoke to and treated everyone equally, irrespective of whether the person was a taxi driver or a federal councillor. His trademark was to drop to his knees in front of all wheelchair users so that he could communicate with them at eye level.

When he was at home with his family, he was able to leave his day-to-day work behind and forget about his duties. He recharged his batteries with music, books, his collections and by spending time in his garden, where he pruned trees and used a scythe to cut the meadow. He had a biotope with ducks and an outdoor pen with little pigs.

Guido A. Zäch would never forget the thought-provoking question about whether people with a spinal cord injury were contagious. It revealed to him just how far removed the perception of the general population was from his vision of comprehensive rehabilitation. Always a man of progressive ideas, he was thinking about equal opportunities as early as 1973.

Thanks to his work, people with a spinal cord injury today are equally integrated into society and have access to life prospects that were considered to be unimaginable many years ago. More than sixty per cent of people with a spinal cord injury can return to work. This places Switzerland in the leading position globally. Achieving this required a clear vision, an ability to see things through, a great deal of courage and incredible perseverance.

He worked for between eighty and ninety hours a week. He rarely took time off and did not go on holiday. He sustained this great commitment throughout his life. “Comprehensive care for people with a spinal cord injury can only be achieved in a 168-hour week. Patients struggle for every one of these 168 hours and do not get even half an hour off”, he used to say. He demanded one hundred per cent not only from his employees, but also from the patients. “Enough is too little. If you give everything, you can achieve even more.”

At the time, permission was not granted for a helicopter landing pad at the Paraplegic Centre in Basel, so once darkness fell, employees parked their cars in such a way that the headlights could be used to ensure a safe landing.