Wörgl opens Tyrol’s fourth primary care centre

Wörgl’s fourth primary care unit in Tyrol began operating on Monday, ORF reported. Like the unit in Telfs, which has been running since December, it is operated by the Diakoniewerk, which has not ruled out further work in Tyrol.

The new centre is housed in the ornate Palais Stawa building. It is intended to provide rapid basic care without long waiting times, including for people who do not have a general practitioner or whose doctor is away.

Centre director Daniel Eder said the team also included dietetics and social work. The centre offers social prescribing, as well as occupational therapy, physiotherapy and clinical psychology.

The Wörgl unit is operated by a wholly owned subsidiary of the Diakoniewerk. The Tyrol Medical Chamber has criticised such centres, arguing that they could draw already scarce medical staff away from rural areas.

The Diakoniewerk said its six doctors in Wörgl had deliberately chosen salaried employment. It said the centre was intended to expand healthcare provision rather than compete with existing practices, pointing to long waiting times for doctors in private practice.

Six more primary care units have already been put out to tender in Tyrol. Hannes Stickler, managing director of PVE Diakonissen GmbH, told ORF that the Diakoniewerk would carefully assess involvement wherever gaps in healthcare existed and was generally prepared to take responsibility for healthcare provision in Tyrol.