Pain patients are not recognised in the medical field.

It is hard enough for pain patients that they do not receive treatment in Austria, despite the fact that Austria has been called upon several times to do more for them.

The Austrian social welfare system also prevents pain patients from seeking treatment abroad by failing to recognise them as disabled, even though their pain restricts them more severely than other already recognised disabilities.

As a pain patient, one very rarely has a pain-free period in which one can look after one’s own household and therefore usually relies on support from domestic helpers and carers or from relatives.

What is a minor challenge for healthy people is an odyssey with an uncertain outcome for pain patients. A trip to the shop becomes a marathon and not only does the sweat pour off, but it also demands a rest period after this actually brief activity, the effects of which can be felt for several days in the form of pain.

Often, standing at the hob for 15 minutes is so arduous that a brief rest for the person affected results in the pizza burning in the oven or the rice sticking to the pan.

From the perspective of the PVA, ÖGK and AMS, these individuals are nevertheless classified as fit for work because pain is not visible and the condition is not recognised as a serious limitation.

Days on which a pain patient experiences almost no pain are extremely rare, and during this time the patient is not supposed to be able to carry out their household duties or simply enjoy the pain-free period – NO, the law stipulates that the pain patient should be engaged in work during this time. It makes no difference to the law that these days are unpredictable or do not occur with any regularity.

Every pain patient must prepare themselves for the fact that they cannot sleep at night when they are in pain and have already missed several appointments with public institutions or authorities because they only managed to fall asleep early in the morning, or have been awake for several days without getting a single minute’s sleep, which leads to bouts of weakness and accidents in the home.

The opiates prescribed only work when the pain is somewhat less severe; when the pain is severe, those affected often try to take their minds off the pain by lying still, which in most cases is simply not successful and leaves the person suffering in agony for hours on end.

As the pain patient has experienced so much lack of understanding from the medical profession, they increasingly withdraw from society and the healthcare system, as there are no long-lasting and effective treatments to alleviate their suffering.

The pain patient is left to cope with their pain on their own.

I am raising funds for legal action against the state’s arbitrary decision to leave these people to fend for themselves and deprive them of their livelihood by failing to recognise their condition. A precedent could bring about changes to the system and finally make it possible for those affected to seek treatment abroad, where guidelines for comprehensive pain management have been implemented.

It is also about the state covering the costs of these treatments or compensating patients for the state’s inaction in such a way that these treatments can be funded.

You can find a personal account of this situation in Austria via the link