A three-year contract signed in 1916 brought Selma Mayer from Hamburg to Jerusalem to serve as head nurse at the Shaare Zedek Medical Center. She remained in that position for nearly five decades, transforming hospital hygiene and clinical standards while enduring periods of severe conflict and epidemic disease in the city.
Early Career in Germany
Born in Hanover in 1884, Selma Mayer sought a career in nursing to provide the care she felt was missing from her own childhood. She completed her professional training at the Israelitisches Krankenhaus in Hamburg. In 1913, she became one of the first Jewish nurses to receive a German State Diploma after passing government licensing exams in internal medicine, surgery, pediatrics, and obstetrics.
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Arriving at Shaare Zedek in December 1916, Mayer encountered a facility lacking electricity, indoor plumbing, and central heating. During a city-wide typhoid and meningitis outbreak, she mandated daily bathing for patients and enforced strict sanitation protocols, including the use of white uniforms to ensure cleanliness. She served as the primary assistant to Dr. Moshe Wallach, overseeing hospital supplies, building maintenance, and the kashrut of the kitchen while working 18-hour days.
Leadership and Legacy
In 1934, she founded the Shaare Zedek School of Nursing to professionalize medical training in Jerusalem. Throughout her tenure, she managed emergency responses to crises such as the 1929 Hebron massacre and the 1947–48 Civil War, even traveling via armed convoy to return to her post. She received the Yakir Yerushalayim award for her services and remained a resident of the hospital until her death in 1984.
Fast facts
- Born: 1884, Hanover
- Died: 1984, Jerusalem
- Education: Israelitisches Krankenhaus
- Primary Employer: Shaare Zedek Medical Center
- Career Start: 1916
- School Founded: 1934
- Citizenship: Israel
- Burial Site: Har HaMenuchot
Questions readers ask
Did Schwester Selma ever leave Jerusalem during her career?
While her contract included vacation time in Germany, she rarely took it, remaining committed to her duties at Shaare Zedek for nearly 50 years.
What was her role during the 1950s polio epidemic?
She managed the isolation ward at Shaare Zedek, which was the only facility in Jerusalem equipped with iron lung machines at that time.
Achievements
- Held posts at Shaare Zedek Medical Center and Israelitisches Krankenhaus