Manfred Pferzinger

• Doctor of Public Health
• Head of Institute Health Management at IMC University of Applied Sciences Krems

The authors explore the similarities and differences that characterise the concepts of Design Thinking and Service Learning, the importance of both rising over the last years. Comparing the two concepts, it can be argued that the focus of Service Learning activities is to inspire intrinsic learning within students. Design Thinking, on the other han...

With the example of the Austrian IMC University of Applied Sciences Krems, the paper describes how Design Thinking is integrated into the curriculum of a master's program to assure achievement of European Qualifications Framework’s learning outcomes as well as supporting students to acquire the skills of the 21st century.

Objective The number of patients requiring an intravitreal injection (IVI) is rising significantly. This study is focusing on finding opportunities to relieve hospital resources, but maintaining a high quality of care, concerning the intravitreal injection pathway. Methods Five eye departments in Austria as well as one eye department and one ophth...

Hospital simulation has so-far concentrated on late phases of architectural planning, in which the design is already fully formulated and undergoes optimization. This paper moves into the exactly opposite direction - it tries to embed simulation into the earliest phase imaginable, which, interestingly, is well before any architectural planning occu...

Im Gesundheitswesen herrscht ein reger Wettbewerb um Kundinnen und Kunden. Wie auch in anderen Branchen wird die Digitalisierung als eines der wichtigsten Themenfelder zur Differenzierung eingeschätzt. Grundsätzlich ist es vor allem entscheidend, dass die Qualität der Leistungen entlang der gesamten Prozesskette, den Anforderungen bzw. Erwartungen...

The practice of healthcare management is essential for the efficient operation of health services, encompassing leadership, management, and direction within healthcare organisations. ‘Health management’ extends beyond healthcare management by integrating principles of public health and health policy. As health management is commonly practised but n...

Homelessness has been on the rise in Austria and the European Union for the past decade—with inconsistent measurement systems and data reinforcing the problem. People who are homeless are also confronted with a high hospitalization and readmission rate. The aim is to identify factors influencing the readmission rate of homeless patients in Austrian...

Background: Long-term care facilities have been confronted with various workforce challenges, including a poor image within the nursing profession, a shortage of staff, and a growing demand for long-term care. Furthermore, these facilities have been significantly impacted by the pandemic and the respective measures with detrimental effects on resid...

Background Physicians impact and promote patient empowerment at various levels. Specialized ambulatory care is provided by either elective physicians or contracted physicians in Austria, which is unique internationally. The difference between the two groups is due to the contractual relationship with the social health insurance providers. This pape...

Sustainable Careers for nurses in long term care: a mixed methods study based on human centered design approach

The authors explore the similarities and differences that make out the concepts of Design Thinking and Service Learning, the importance of both rising over the last years. When comparing the two concepts, one can argue, that the focus of Service Learning activities is to inspire intrinsic learning within students. On the other hand, Design Thinking...

Purpose Until today a central register for medical guidelines has not been established in Austria. Hence, the study at hand aims to identify important success factors for medical guidelines in Austria in order to fully support the future activities of organisations developing these guidelines. Design/methodology/approach Using a specially‐develope...