No profit sought

Entrepreneurs now want to run medical centers

Although Vienna is the leader in terms of the number of PVEs, it is still a long way from a rapid expansion.

(Bild: Mareen Fischinger, thinkstockphotos.de, Krone KREATIV)

The healthcare system is in crisis. Politicians have not yet found a suitable solution to full hospitals and a lack of panel doctors. In Vienna, pediatricians in particular are now in short supply. A private initiative now wants to lend politicians a helping hand. 

According to the ambitious plan of the Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK), the number of primary care centers (PVE) is to grow from 75 to 300 by the end of 2030. Although Vienna leads the way in Austria in terms of the number of PVEs, expansion is slow. There are currently 23, and a further three locations have been put out to tender. The application deadline for these is mid-October. A further six are under discussion. By 2025, there should be 36 centers in Vienna, ÖGK confirmed in response to a Krone inquiry.

Economic risks too
But there are sometimes high hurdles. Despite generous subsidies and support when setting up, there are also economic risks for PVE operators. And not every doctor is a born entrepreneur. Finding real estate can also be difficult. So expansion is stalling. The Viennese architect Victor Löffler has also had this experience: "I have developed two primary care centers for doctors. That's where I got to know the PVE system. And also the challenges." Together with management consultant Paul Mitteröcker and others, Löffler founded the association PVE - Verein gemeinnütziger Anbieter gesundheitlicher und sozialer Dienste.

Association now wants to help politicians
The aim: "To finally bring medical care for the population into the 21st century." From now on, the association wants to support politicians in achieving the goal of 300 primary care facilities in Austria in record time. How? Löffler: "We are now applying as an operator for ÖGK tenders for primary care facilities throughout Austria."

Victor Löffler wants to close the gap in primary care centers as a lateral entrant.

(Bild: Holl Reinhard/Reinhard Holl)

Entrepreneurs want to use their contacts
Discussions with doctors have shown that many would like a secure employment relationship with flexible working hours. The association could offer this as the operator of the primary care centers. And there is another advantage to this structure. Löffler: "Thanks to close contacts with the real estate industry and entrepreneurs, we benefit from synergy effects when it comes to financing and finding locations."

Fending off foreign locusts
Will this turn healthcare into a business for rich investors? Löffler: "Quite the opposite. We are also taking this initiative because we want to prevent international corporations from entering the healthcare business in Austria and maximizing their profits at the expense of patients. Every cent of profit that is generated is reinvested or flows into social projects."

In some districts there is only one (!) statutory health insurance pediatrician
A look at the number of pediatricians in Vienna shows why the current initiative is so important. The population is growing, but the number of panel doctors is decreasing. There is a massive need to catch up in Vienna, especially in the area of care for children and adolescents, says the Medical Association. "Doctors in the solidarity-based healthcare system are increasingly reaching their limits, and general medical practices often take on the treatment of small patients in order to maintain care, even though this area is already at its limit," says Vice President Naghme Kamaleyan-Schmied.

How the pediatricians are distributed across Vienna

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/stock.adobe.com)

Very uneven coverage
The availability of statutory health insurance pediatricians varies greatly depending on the district. In Penzing, for example, there is only one panel doctor's surgery for over 90,000 inhabitants. The same applies to the Innere Stadt, Mariahilf, Neubau and Josefstadt. Most pediatricians (14) can be found in Donaustadt. In Floridsdorf, on the other hand, where only around 20,000 fewer people live, there are only six (see chart above).

ÖGK refers to advertised vacancies
The Austrian Regional Health Insurance Fund already drew attention to the shortage last year and wants to counteract it with pediatric primary care facilities (PVE). "In 2023, nine children's PVEs were advertised, six of which are already in operation (two each in the 10th and 22nd districts and one each in the 16th and 23rd districts). A further three - in the 9th, 13th and 18th districts - are currently in the implementation phase," reports a spokesperson. In addition, four additional cashier positions are being created, all four of which have already been advertised.

Vacancies cannot be filled
However: "Some vacancies in the areas of pediatrics, general medicine or gynecology cannot be filled because they are no longer attractive for doctors due to the enormous workloads, time pressure and remuneration in the cash register system," says Kamaleyan-Schmied and once again calls for the cash register positions to be made more attractive.