In 1964 personal reasons promted Peter Rehme to ask his friend, Professor Dr. Florian Laubenthal, a researcher in the realms of psychiatry and neurology in Essen, a pertinent question:
“Can I do something to promote research on depressions?”
Professor Laubenthal replied:
“Money is available for practically everything, but our medical discipline lacks the necessary funds; we are so much in arrears as a result of that wretched war. Our treatment methods are largely empirical.”
This was the germ from which the idea of a Foundation originated combined with prize award offers for good research results in the specialist discipline of depression.
The name of the Foundation is derived from the namens of Peter Rehme’s mother Anna, who died in 1972, and his daughter Mrs. Monika Rief.
The Anna-Monika-Foundation was officially sanctioned by the Provincial Government of North Rhine Westphalia on 9 June 1965.
Professor Laubenthal’s successor in organising the Foundation and as Speaker of the Physicians’ Commission is Professor Dr. Fr. Panse, Director of the Department of Psychiatry of the University of Düsseldorf.
Other major promoters of the idea were, besides the family of the founder, Prof. Dr. P. Kielholz, Basel, Prof. Dr. H. Helmchen, Berlin, and Prof. Dr. B. Hess, Heidelberg.
Prof. Dr. Paul Kielholz has been instrumental in promoting a world-wide interest in the Anna-Monika-Foundation.
The Anna-Monika-Foundation is a private foundation which does not get any financial support from federal institutions not from the industry.
Gallery of Pictures taken during the Prize Award Ceremony 2019:
Gallery of Pictures taken during the Prize Award Ceremony 2015 and the Lectures:
Pictures of former jury:
