KIEL. Professor Dr. Hartmut Göbel has been awarded the Federal Cross of Merit, First Class, by Federal President Joachim Gauck. Minister-President Torsten Albig presented the award on Thursday, February 28, in Kiel.
The head of government praised the recipient's achievements: " For more than 20 years, you have demonstrated an unparalleled commitment in Germany to the research and treatment of migraines and other chronic headaches
," said Albig. He added that Hartmut Göbel had done pioneering work in Germany and laid the foundations for the modern understanding of headache disorders. Thanks to his dedication, severe conditions can be sustainably improved through newly developed therapies. Göbel has thus helped countless sufferers in recent years.
Speech by Minister-President Torsten Albig
Link to the homepage of the State Chancellery
Link Press release from the State Chancellery
Link Wikipedia article Hartmut Göbel
Dear Professor Göbel,
I have apparently always overlooked the message so far, but even many months later I find it no less impressive.
The many commenters before me have already said exactly what I would write. Therefore, I will be brief for once:
They are fantastic!
It's wonderful for all of us that you and your dedication exist! A huge thank you!
Warm greetings from Düsseldorf from Pia Ersfeld
Dear Professor Göbel,
you more than deserve the Federal Cross of Merit, First Class.
With the achievements you have already accomplished and will continue to accomplish, you and your medical team deserve our warmest congratulations. You have achieved things that many clinics can only dream of. You and your consistently friendly staff come highly recommended; I have already done so several times.
I wish you, your family, and your staff all the very best for the future, especially good health, and that you may continue to relieve many patients of their suffering.
Warmest regards from Dahn
, Gerhard Hemmer
Dear Professor Göbel,
I was delighted to read about your award. No doctor has ever been as dedicated to me as you, taking the time to listen and always encouraging me. What you have built with your clinic is truly admirable, and you have already helped so many people. Once again, my congratulations and all the best to you, your family, and your team.
Sincerely
, Jutta Schulze
Dear Professor Göbel,
I would like to congratulate you most sincerely once again on this great honor. You more than deserve this prestigious recognition, as the Federal Cross of Merit is only awarded to very special people who have accomplished great things in their lives, and you are certainly among them, dear Professor. Your warmth, humanity, and helpfulness, no matter the time of day… I could list them again and again. You are fortunate to have an outstanding team and a wonderful family by your side who support you, and that makes everything complete. You have made the Kiel Pain Clinic what it is today. I felt very comfortable there as a patient and would gladly return. Thank you so much for your help, which you always provide. I wish you continued success, much happiness, and good health, also for your family.
Warmest regards from Ludwigshafen
, Claudia Eichhorn
Dear Professor Göbel,
Only today did I learn of your great and well-deserved award, and I too would like to offer you my warmest congratulations on being awarded the Federal Cross of Merit, First Class, and thank you most sincerely for your outstanding commitment and your truly impressive work in the field of headache research and medical care. My stay at your clinic at the beginning of last year was a lifeline and a turning point in my management of the migraines I've suffered from since childhood, and I am extremely grateful to you and the entire team at the pain clinic for your expertise, empathy, and loving support in exploring new ways to cope with the condition.
Warmest greetings from London and all the best for the future
,
Iris Wien
Dear Professor Göbel
As one of your patients, I would like to congratulate you most sincerely on this high and special award from the Federal Republic of Germany.
For a long time before I came to your clinic, I had read reports about you and seen you in television programs. Your unique way of explaining and informing people always impressed me. Your patience and love for your work were evident in your writing and palpable in your reports. In 2001, I finally decided to visit your clinic. There, everything I had been told about you was confirmed. I felt deeply reassured and safe, secure, and in the right place for my problems.
As your patient, I have followed your progress and the further development of your support services.
I could contact you with questions at any time. No one is left alone, even years later.
I was incredibly impressed by the setup of the Headbook, your support, and the monthly live chat. The time, effort, and energy you dedicate to us is enormous.
I am incredibly proud and happy that you have now been honored for all your work, which I believe is love for your profession and love for migraine and pain sufferers.
Congratulations and best wishes for your future endeavors!
Warm greetings from Düsseldorf
Susanne Mankowsky
Dear Professor Göbel,
Having arrived home safe and sound, I would like to congratulate you once again, on behalf of the Cluster Headache Self-Help Groups (CSG) eV, most sincerely on this high and absolutely justified award; and with you – as you yourself have already said – those who support you in every way in your efforts for (cluster) headache patients: your dear wife, your wonderful children and your outstanding team at the pain clinic, especially Ms. Fromm and Drs. Heinze.
It was a great honor for me to attend this wonderful celebration on behalf of the cluster headache patients, and I would like to express my sincere thanks once again.
If I were to write down everything I could thank you for, the server would probably be overloaded. Bettina Frank has already mentioned much of it in her post. I would like to add your incredible generosity, for example, when it comes to organizing informational events – I'm thinking, for instance, of the "3rd Kiel Cluster Headache Days" last year; when questions arise within the CSG membership that we can't answer immediately, and you usually have competent and always helpful answers within minutes (even late at night!); and much more.
I look forward to many more years of intensive work together for the benefit of (cluster) headache patients, hopefully in the best of health
Best regards
Jakob C. Terhaag
Dear Professor Göbel,
My warmest congratulations on this very special award from the state. No one more deserving could have been chosen!
As moderator of the migraine and headache forum Headbook, which you initiated, I would also like to thank you on behalf of all our members, who are so incredibly grateful to you.
The Prime Minister has already outlined what you have done for science and research in this country. It is also well known that your commitment has set, and will continue to set, global standards. Therefore, I would like to address something that is just as important to you as science and research: your incredible voluntary work!
They dedicate their time to raising awareness, even in their limited free time. They initiated self-help organizations and the pain therapy guide for Schleswig-Holstein. They are particularly committed to the often-overlooked issue of cluster headaches, providing people with headache diaries, an iPhone app, and Headbook completely free of charge. All these vital tools for sufferers were given to us all by them. No one can imagine the amount of time and money they have invested.
Your monthly live chat on Headbook means a free private consultation with a leading pain therapy expert for those affected. For you, it means further dedication to people after a long workday at the clinic. You repeatedly sacrifice these evenings for us, evenings that should actually be for your own relaxation.
You are always available for me and others to contact if there are problems, if a seriously affected patient needs help very quickly, if I need advice and support for our members and, last but not least, for myself.
All this in addition to your work in the clinic, your lecture tours worldwide, your commitment to the further education of doctors and students, your studies initiated by you, your work on your countless books, some of which are standard textbooks, and so much more.
For this, and for everything else that cannot possibly be mentioned here, I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart. I wish you continued joy and success in your work, and above all, good health. A big thank you also goes to your family, who are always there for you and support you.
Warmest greetings from Munich and wishing
you
Bettina Frank