Doctors’ chamber challenges Vorarlberg patient advocate reform

Austria’s Medical Chamber has criticised plans to restructure Vorarlberg’s patient advocacy service, questioning its independence and raising concerns about quality and transparency, ORF reported.

The planned changes would bring the service “closer to state politics”, the chamber said. The Vorarlberg state government intends to take over the service, which is currently organised as an association.

Although the patient advocate would remain independent of instructions, the government would have to renew the appointment every five years. Under the proposed law, renewal could also take place without a public tender. Critics fear that the prospect of reappointment could create implicit pressure to act in the interests of the state and its hospital operator.

Patient advocacy services in the other Austrian states are also appointed by their respective state governments.

Alexander Wolf has led Vorarlberg’s patient advocacy service since 1999. The independent and free service supports patients with alleged treatment errors, conflicts and advance healthcare directives.

The Medical Chamber also criticised plans to abolish the patient advocate’s annual activity report, describing it as an important source of information for the public. Removing it would make the service’s work less transparent, the chamber said. In future, the law would provide only for the service to give information and report to the state government.

The chamber further objected to not being represented on the commission that appoints the patient advocate. It also criticised the proposal that “reasonably well-founded knowledge of health, hospital and compensation law” would be sufficient for the position.

Vorarlberg Health Councillor Martina Rüscher of the Austrian People’s Party rejected the criticism when asked by ORF Vorarlberg on Monday. She said the patient advocacy service would in future be established, like the child and youth advocacy service, as an independent state body with clearly regulated appointments and legally protected responsibilities.

“The existing services for patients will remain unchanged,” Rüscher said. The state would also combine related structures, reduce duplication and unnecessary bureaucracy, and create a transparent and accessible point of contact, she said.