Austrian rehab

I have a cousin, Uta, who lives in Austria. She lives there because her mother, when she was still a child, had a communicable disease at the time the family boarded the ship to America. Because she wasn’t allowed to emigrate with the rest of the family, she stayed in Austria with her grandmother. She never joined her family in the U.S. She grew up, got married, and gave birth to Uta in Austria. I knew Uta because she lived here for a time when she was a teenager and has visited off and on since then. We communicate occasionally by email.

When I told Uta about my knee replacements, she let me know that, in Austria, people who have that surgery are automatically sent to a rehab facility for six weeks. (I went home a few hours after my surgery!) I was reminded of this after reading a recent article in The New York Times with the headline, “In Austria, Government Health Care Can Look a Bit Like a Spa.”

Indeed. Austria has a number of rehab centers that are paid for, in large part, by the government’s social insurance program. The centers take care of people with heart conditions, cancer, diabetes, obesity, pulmonary health, neurological diseases, and joint problems.

In describing patients at the cardiac facility, the article states: “Some headed to water aerobics, others to art therapy. They tried out calisthenics, lifted weights, cycled outdoors and took dips in the plunge pool. Should they choose, they could also just sink into an ergonomic lounger—all of which is considered part of the cure.” The center houses 175 patients, “most with their own ensuite bathroom and balcony.” Meals are personalized and the food is attractively prepared, as you can see in this photo. 

Patients are closely monitored—not to everyone’s liking. Still, compared to my own home post-op situation, those Austrian places sound like a dream.

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