Haus der Barmherzigkeit: Birthplace of Geriatrics

Summary Medical care for older adults has existed since the early days of medicine, but it was Ignatz L. Nascher’s coining of the term “Geriatrics” in analogy to pediatrics in 1909, inspired by his visits to facilities in Vienna and its tradition in establishing new fields of medicine, that gave rise to a new awareness. These facilities included the Lainz care facility, which had only been founded 5 years earlier and was modeled on the Haus der Barmherzigkeit founded in 1875, and included medical care and special design of the living environment. In a later article on the history of geriatrics, John E. Morley wrote in 2004, “Austria was a powerhouse … of geriatric care” and “the Austrian system … inspired Nascher to coin the term geriatrics.” An important foundation of this “system” was the Haus der Barmherzigkeit, which had been founded 30 years earlier and can therefore be regarded as the birthplace of geriatrics. After an eventful 150 years, the Haus der Barmherzigkeit is now ready to make important contributions to the more stable establishment and further development of the specialist area of geriatrics, with an excellent quality of care as well as research and teaching and concepts to make it more attractive to employees.