Post-COVID-19 Care: Medical Humanities and Health Economics
Date: Oktober 2021 – Dezember 2025
Funding: Universität Wien, Medizinische Universität Wien
Collaborator(s): Department of English and American Studies, University of Vienna
Website: https://postcovidcare.univie.ac.at/
Information: Susanne Mayer, Agata Łaszewska
The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has had devastating impacts on healthcare systems, economies, and communities worldwide. An expert in health and healthcare disparities argues, “[t]here are three coexisting pandemics: COVID-19, poverty, and fear” (qtd. in Frieden 2020). The close intertwining of these three parallel developments – (1) the effects of the virus on individual health and healthcare systems, (2) the concomitant exacerbation of individual socio-economic status, and (3) the global media spread of misinformation – requires interventions that go beyond standard research and translational efforts. This Interuniversity Cluster project aims to offer a first step in this direction by bringing together Medical Humanities/Cultural Studies (Univ.-Prof. Dr. Monika Pietrzak-Franger; University of Vienna) and Health Economics (Assoz.-Prof. Dr. Susanne Mayer, Dr. Agata Łaszewska; Medical University of Vienna). The project aims to contribute to a better understanding of how translational efforts can take the above factors into consideration and improve post-COVID-19 care in Austria.
Result(s):
- Mayer S. Health economic perspectives on long Covid. Young EMERG International ME Workshop Series - Vienna 2025; 2025 Nov 27-28; Vienna (keynote speech)
- Gamillscheg P, Laszewska A, Hoffmann K, Simon J, Mayer S. Barriers, facilitators, and the role of central coordination: understanding long COVID-19 healthcare access in a universal healthcare system. Arch Public Health. 2025 Nov 27;83:286. DOI: 0.1186/s13690-025-01783-1
- Gamillscheg P, Laszewska A, Hoffmann K, Simon J, Mayer S. Access barriers and the role of central coordination: Long COVID-19 healthcare in Austria. Eur J Public Health. 2025 Oct;35(S4):ckaf161.1181. DOI: 10.1093/eurpub/ckaf161.1181
- Gamillscheg P, Laszewska A, Hoffmann K, Simon J, Mayer S. Public gaps and private bridges: healthcare access barriers and facilitators to long COVID-19 patients in Austria. 8th ATHEA 2025 conference. Status quo and new directions for Austrian health economics; 2025 Mar 6-7; Vienna (oral, presented by Gamillscheg P)
- Mayer S, Gamillscheg P, Laszewska A. Post COVID-Care – work of the health economics research group. Connecting Minds: Network symposium of the National Reference Center for post-viral Syndromes; 2025 Mar 13; Vienna (oral, presented by Mayer S.)
- Gamillscheg P, Laszewska A, Kirchner S, Hoffmann K, Simon J & Mayer S. Barriers and facilitators of healthcare access for long COVID-19 patients in a universal healthcare system: qualitative evidence from Austria. Int J Equity Health. 2024 Oct 23;23(1):220. DOI: 10.1186/s12939-024-02302-4
- Gamillscheg P, Laszewska A, Hoffmann K, Simon J, Mayer S. "Finding a GP in the public sector taking long COVID seriously is like playing the lottery”: A qualitative study on access barriers and facilitators to healthcare for long COVID-19 patients in Austria. EuHEA 2024 Conference; Opening up perspectives on health economics; 2024 Jul 1-3; Vienna (oral, presented by Gamillscheg P.)
- Gamillscheg P, Mayer S, Pietrzak-Franger M, Hilmar C, Lange A, Simon J, et al. Understanding the associations between information sources,sociodemographics, and views on public health measures: evidence from the COVID-19 pandemic in Austria. BMC Public Health. 2024 Jun 12;24(1):1576. DOI: 10.1186/s12889-024-19061-0
- Mayer S, Łaszewska A, Borek J. Der steinige Weg zur Genesung: Barrieren in der Long COVID-19-Gesundheitsversorgung. Policy Brief. Abteilung für Gesundheitskonomie, Zentrum für Public Health, Medizinische Universität Wien. Wien, Juni 2024