FHK welcomes amendments to the law - however, in order to relieve the burden on the healthcare system, there needs to be an expansion of competences on the basis of publicly financed Master's degree programmes at universities of applied sciences and universities of applied sciences

The Austrian University of Applied Sciences Conference (FHK) considers it fundamentally positive that the professional framework conditions for medical-therapeutic-diagnostic (MTD) healthcare professions and qualified healthcare and nursing (DGKP) have been modernised with the two amendments. However, it is regrettable that the amendments were not used to introduce standards in Austria that have long been "state of the art" in international comparison and contribute significantly to making the professions more attractive.

The MTD professions (biomedical analysts, dieticians, occupational therapists, speech therapists, orthoptists, physiotherapists and radiology technologists) and the DGKP have been trained as part of scientifically based Bachelor's degree programmes at universities of applied sciences (FH) and universities of applied sciences (HAW) since 2006 and 2008 respectively.

It is now urgently necessary to take the next step quickly and also establish publicly financed Master's programmes at UASs, i.e. where the basic studies take place.

"We believe that the next federal government has a duty to implement this. In order to provide the population with the healthcare services of the MTD and DGKP in the future, the healthcare professions must be made even more attractive and adapted to international standards. We will only be able to get people interested in these professions and further develop the job profile with excellent framework conditions in training and study programmes. With publicly funded Master's degree programmes that extend qualifications, we are improving career prospects and further development opportunities while at the same time reducing the burden on the healthcare system. With their many years of scientific expertise in the core competences of the healthcare professions, the Austrian universities of applied sciences are reliable partners in this regard, ensuring study quality at the highest level," says FHK President Ulrike Prommer.

The current position paper of the FHK, which also contains the demand for publicly financed Master's programmes in the field of healthcare professions, can be found at here.

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