MedUni Vienna Annual Report 2022
A new dawn – the age of digital medicine
We are not yet living in the age of dataism sketched out by Yuval Harari in his book Homo Deus, nor are we in an era of transhumanism. And this foreword was not written by ChatGPT, but by a real-life, flesh-and-blood university rector.
Without doubt, though, digital technologies are fundamentally changing our world – and the health system, too. Digital teaching, AI technologies and telemedicine have long since been an integral part of life at our university as well. Thanks to the innovative spirit of our employees, we have already made a significant number of important, groundbreaking contributions in these areas, enabling us to set the tone when it comes to shaping the future of medicine. We are at the dawn of the new age of digital medicine, but at the same time we must not neglect analogue, human expertise. As Eric Topol puts it in Deep Medicine: hopefully, digital technologies will lift some of the burden from our shoulders as doctors and leave more time for direct contact with patients.
Our university will continue to embrace its position as a leader in research, teaching and patient care – which was underlined once again in various international rankings in 2022 – by remaining firmly committed to meeting its responsibilities to society. Day in and day out, the work of our employees makes an important contribution to health promotion, healthcare as well as health communication and education in Austria.
And this report highlights just how wide-ranging their outstanding achievements are.