After an expansion: VAMED opens the largest rehabilitation clinic in Vienna

• New Neurology Center at the Rehaklinik Wien Baumgarten
• 222 beds for neurology and orthopedics patients are fully ready for use. Total investment: 50 million euros
• Urban rehabilitation services reduce waiting times and ensure family connections

Vienna – Vienna now has a new rehabilitation offer. Rehaklinik Wien Baumgarten officially opened its new Center for Neurological Rehabilitation on Tuesday. With a total of 222 beds for orthopedics and neurology patients, the Vienna Baumgarten Rehabilitation Clinic is now the largest inpatient rehabilitation center in Vienna. The builder and operator, VAMED, which is the world's leading health care provider, invested a total of around 50 million euros and created 176 new jobs in the 14th District of Vienna.  

Sandra Frauenberger, City Councilor for Social Affairs, Health and Women, said, "With new treatment areas, we are shortening waiting times at a rehab facility. In the future, we will be able to provide the people of Vienna with inpatient follow-up care directly after acute hospital treatment. This increases the likelihood that patients will be able to get back to how their lives were before their illness, and also provides some relief to our hospitals. With these new rehabilitation services, now available closer to home, family members of patients can also get more involved in the rehabilitation process." 

Dr. Ernst Wastler, CEO of VAMED AG, said, "The opening of the new Center for Neurological Rehabilitation at Rehaklinik Wien Baumgarten represents a major extension of the range of health care options for the entire eastern area of Austria, and is also another important step in VAMED's development. Our activities in Vienna – from the technical operation of the AKH through to our rehabilitation clinics– are an important reference for us as a leading health care provider, and an impetus for further international projects. With this successful opening, we now have more than 2,500 employees in Vienna." 

Kurt Aust, Engineer and Deputy General Director of the Pension Insurance Institute [Pensionsversicherungsanstalt (PVA)], said: "Based on the current need according to the rehabilitation plan in place, there will be a shortfall of more than 230 beds in inpatient neurological rehabilitation centers in Eastern Austria by 2020. The need in the areas of cardiovascular disease and orthopedics is just as high. With the commissioning of this new center, neurological rehabilitation care is significantly improved. VAMED, as a contractual partner with the PVA, is therefore making an important contribution to the eventual fulfillment of all the needs in terms of rehabilitation at this location."
The need for neurological rehabilitation is continuously on the riseIn Vienna, more than 30,000 people suffer from severe neurological or cerebrovascular diseases every year. The largest percentage of these are stroke and craniocerebral injuries. Nearly one in three of these patients need follow-up neurological rehabilitation. In patients with Parkinson's disease or multiple sclerosis, a need for rehabilitative treatment has also been demonstrated. The number of cases is growing significantly due to our aging population. At the same time, acute neurological treatment has made great progress over the past few years due to the many new developments in diagnostics and drug therapy, which means survival rates have significantly increased. The need for neurological rehabilitation has therefore steadily increased in recent years.

International expertise in innovative treatments in state-of-the-art treatment areas

With its rehabilitation facilities, VAMED is not only committed to providing the best possible care and treatment at the highest level – it is also a leader in innovation and development of new approaches to various types of rehabilitation. At the Vienna Baumgarten Rehabilitation Clinic, in addition to the established rehabilitation therapies, the latest treatment options, which are recommended based on scientific and practical knowledge, are also available. These range from mobility robots to new computer-assisted dual task training sessions for the entire motor system and to neuromodulating techniques that can be used in targeted therapy sessions to rebuild impaired areas of the brain.

With this expansion, state-of-the-art treatment areas are now available for these therapies. The total area includes more than 1,700 square meters of treatment areas for strength and endurance training, 43 individual treatment rooms, two aquatherapy pools, a climbing room and fully equipped examination rooms for electrodiagnostics, nerve ultrasound exams and video-endoscopic swallowing exams. Doctors, neuropsychologists, physical therapists, occupational and speech therapists all work closely together to provide integrated care.

Worldwide, VAMED now employs more than 650 doctors, whose expertise is connected through the International Medical Board. Especially in the area of neurology, VAMED physicians have gained a worldwide reputation for using the latest therapeutic approaches. This international medical expertise will now also benefit patients in Vienna and is available to any National Health Service patient.

Urban recreation space enables inpatient rehabilitation with family connections

Since the Vienna Baumgarten Rehabilitation Clinic opened in 2014, more than 9,000 patients have already benefited from its orthopedics rehabilitation services. In the new Center for Neurology at the Vienna Baumgarten Rehab Hospital, 70 patients can now be treated simultaneously.

 However, a neurological disorder does not affect the patient alone. It also has an impact on his or her family environment. With rehabilitation now available directly in Vienna, which is closer to home for many people, it is now easier for families to actively participate in the treatments and maintain connections with the patient. Specific training facilities, including a therapy kitchen, a therapy workshop and a therapy room with raised beds help patients simulate everyday life routines and learn new ones. In addition, patients benefit from the immediate neighborhood around the Steinhofgründe, one of the most important recreation areas in the city.  

Eighth VAMED rehab hospital for neurological rehabilitation

Now with Rehaklinik Wien Baumgarten, VAMED has eight facilities that focus on neurological rehabilitation, including the NRZ Rosenhügel in Vienna and the Zihlschlacht Rehabilitation Clinic , which is the leading neurological rehabilitation clinic in Switzerland. With a total of 16 rehabilitation clinics, VAMED is also the largest private rehabilitation provider in Austria. The Vienna Baumgarten Rehabilitation Clinic is now the company's largest inpatient rehabilitation facility.