Difficulty getting a doctor’s appointment: dissatisfaction with health care

This was the result of a survey conducted by the Demox Institute on behalf of the Austrian Health Forum (AHF). While 37 percent of the 1,000 respondents said they were “very satisfied” with the health care system in May 2020, this May the figure was only nine percent. The results were presented at the Schladming AHF Congress and will be discussed there.

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Austrians are less satisfied with their health system than before the pandemic. In the most recent survey, over half (57 percent) of those surveyed stated that they were “very satisfied” or “somewhat satisfied” with the local health care. However, 65 percent also saw a deterioration in the quality of care, while in the previous year 59 percent saw a declining quality criticized.

Appointment availability criticized

Half (50 percent) found it difficult to get a doctor’s appointment. In 2023, 33 percent criticized the availability of appointments.

In addition to the availability of appointments, other aspects were queried: around a third rated the Austrian health system as “not” (24 percent) or “not at all” (8 percent) in a simple and clear manner. More than one in ten said they “didn’t” or “didn’t know at all” where to turn if they had a medical problem. In any case, half of those surveyed asked their close family and friends.

Christoph Hörhan, organizer of the Austrian Health Forum, interpreted the survey results overall as a “loss of trust”. This would be part of a “Europe-wide trend” that the WHO has already pointed out. This year, the AHF Forum in Schladming is taking trust in the healthcare system and medical care as its general theme.