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LIVING IN AUSTRIA

Austria tops table for use of online government services

Out of the German-speaking countries, people living in the Austria are the most likely to be familiar with digital government services – and to like using them.

Published: 20 October 2023 17:31 CEST
Austria tops table for use of online government services
People in Austria are the happiest with digital government services across the German-speaking world. Photo by freestocks on Unsplash

Some 80 percent of people in Austria are at least familiar with the e-government options existing through government online portals. Some 73 percent say they come with clear advantages and 70 percent use them regularly in Austria.

That’s according to the e-Government Monitor study for 2023, which finds that Austria comes out far ahead of its other German-speaking counterparts in Germany and Switzerland.

Some 60 percent of people in Switzerland use government digital services regularly compared with Austria’s 70 percent, with 68 percent of Swiss-based respondents saying they consider themselves to have a good awareness of the e-Government options available.

By contrast, only 30 percent of people in Germany feel they have this level of awareness.

Some 38 percent of all smartphone users in Austria have the ‘Digitales Amt’ app downloaded onto their phone, which allows people easy access to view tax assessments or file returns online, as well as to use the Handy Signatur or ID Austria functions. These authentication services allow users to, among other things, sign contracts digitally – without needing to be somewhere in person or sending a signed copy through the post.

It also allows people to use their digital ID as a driver’s licence valid anywhere in the EU, which means people can simply use their phone if asked for their licence, rather than needing to make sure their licence is on them.

The most commonly used service among people in Austria who use e-government offerings is online tax filing – with 94 percent of people who regularly use digital services in Austria saying they use this function. Around 70 percent have used it to apply for certain benefits. 55 percent have used it to change their registered address.

Digitization State Secretary Florian Tursky (ÖVP) says the report is good news for people in Austria, who have taken well to the digital services offered by the state.

There is still some room for improvement though. Around 26 percent of people in Austria say many online options are hard to find. 29 percent say the registration process is also too complicated.

EXPLAINED: What you need to know about Austria’s new digital ID?

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HEALTH

Patients in Vienna face long waits for specialist health appointments

Waiting times to get appointments with health specialists in Vienna have increased significantly, a new study has revealed.

Published: 17 May 2024 09:56 CEST
Patients in Vienna face long waits for specialist health appointments

Accessing essential healthcare within a reasonable timeframe is becoming increasingly difficult for Viennese residents.

The Vienna Medical Association presented their new study this week which shows that waiting times for appointments with health specialists have increased significantly in recent years.

The study, which involved contacting over 850 doctors’ practices via so-called “mystery calls,” revealed that child and adolescent psychiatry currently had the longest waiting times in the city.

Patients can expect to wait an average of 90 days for an appointment.

Other specialisations where patients have to wait long to receive help include radiology (57 days), neurology (45 days), ophthalmology (44 days), pulmonology (36 days), internal medicine (33 days), and dermatology (28 days).

The waiting time for seeing a gynaecologist has increased fourfold since 2012, with patients now waiting an average of 32 days.

READ MORE: Why are there fewer public sector doctors in Austria?

No new patients accepted

In certain specialist areas, there is no capacity to accommodate new patients. The situation where no new patients are accepted occurs particularly often in paediatric practices, where more than half of the public healthcare practices have put a freeze on admissions.

In child and adolescent psychiatry, 40 percent do not accept new patients, and among gynaecologists, it is almost a third (30 percent). Family doctors also struggle with welcoming new patients, and many of their practices have already reached full capacity.

The Medical Association calls for immediate action, urging the health insurance sector to become more attractive and receive better funding. This could involve measures to incentivise doctors to work within the public system, potentially reducing wait times and improving patient access to care.

During the study presentation, Johannes Steinhart, president of the association, described the increased waiting times as the result of neglect within the established health insurance sector. He said he believes that the public health system is massively endangered.

Naghme Kamaleyan-Schmied, chairwoman of the Curia of the resident doctors in the association, pointed out that while the population of the federal capital has grown by 16 percent since 2012, the number of public doctors has fallen by 12 percent in the same period.

The association now wants to make the public healthcare system more attractive to doctors, which could cut down waiting times and make it easier for patients to receive care. The association’s demands for this to happen include increasing flexibility in contract options, integrating health and social professions in individual practices, reducing bureaucracy, and improving fees.

ÖGK, Österreichische Gesundheitskasse, Austria’s largest public healthcare fund, is currently creating 100 additional public health positions, with almost two-thirds of the positions already having applicants, as well as planning for another 100 positions. They also aim to create a central telemedicine service and a platform for making appointments by phone and online, which is meant to reduce waiting times and improve access to care.

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