A dedicated Palliative Care Unit with 12 beds was opened in June 2010. This unit offers all the care options specific to palliative care units, such as intensive medical, psychological/psychotherapeutic, physiotherapeutic, dietetic and spiritual care, as well as the use of social workers to optimise discharge management. Volunteers also work in the Palliative Care Unit.
In April 2013, an own Clinical Division of Palliative Medicine of the Department of Internal Medicine I was founded.
Palliative medicine is the multi-professional care of seriously ill patients with advanced disease for whom cure is no longer possible. It focuses not only on the patient's physical symptoms, but also on their psychological, social and spiritual needs. As the unit is part of the Department of Internal Medicine I, which specialises in haematology, oncology and infectious diseases, it mainly, but not exclusively, treats cancer patients who require palliative care.
The Clinical Division of Palliative Medicine at the Department of Internal Medicine I is an ESMO-accredited Centre for Integrated Oncology and Palliative Care and the leading study centre of the Austrian Palliative Care Study Group (AUPACS). AUPACS is the platform for conducting clinical trials in which all Austrian palliative care units can participate, with the aim of conducting comprehensive research in the field of palliative care. The focus of these studies is on outcome research, the improvement of quality of life through the treatment of distressing symptoms, and the further development of palliative care therapies for patients receiving palliative care.
Since autumn 2011, the Clinical Division of Palliative Medicine has been the first palliative care facility in Vienna to be an "ESMO Designated Centre of Integrated Oncology and Palliative Care". This ESMO accreditation is a visible sign of the good and active cooperation between the Clinical Division of Oncology and the Clinical Division of Palliative Medicine.
A palliative care unit is autonomous with regard to the admission, treatment and discharge of patients: Hospice and Palliative Care in Austria