Doctors - The Monopolists

The Austrians are proud of their health care system and their doctors' knowledge and skills (even though they have to wait 4 hours on average in case of emergency). I think I'm an especially unlucky patient because I'm yet to meet a good, caring doctor, and one who doesn't let me wait at least one hour even though I pay €150 out of my own packet.

In Vienna, doctor offices are always overcrowded with patients who have appointments for the same time slot. It is a known and well accepted procedure: when you make an appointment for a doctor visit, you know you will surely meet other patients with exactly the same appointment time.

One reason why doctors don't care about patient waiting time is that they have a virtual monopoly over the health care. You don't have any free market choice when you must visit a doctor. Their profession is well-protected from intruders (or bad guys). These unwelcome intruders are newly graduated doctors and immigrant doctors. New doctors find it very difficult to start working in Vienna because of doctor quotas. And immigrant doctors have more additional obstacles to overcome, which take years enough that they start working in other businesses. That is how the Austrians create a virtual shortage of doctors that drive up prices and waiting times.

Also, the doctors (general practitioners or specialists) have the unlucky habit to work only 10-30 hours a week. I'm yet to see a general practitioner who works over 30 hours a week. That's because they can squeeze enough patients into their short working hours and still manage to be the best earners in this country.

I find it very strange that the waiting times don't change if your visit is paid by the universal health insurance or you pay it out of your own packet.

How does Austria compare to my home country? Well, my home country is classified as a developing country. So the comparison may not be fair. However, I should say that if you have a private health insurance or pay your expenses yourself, you get better care. In my home country the quality of care is dependent on your income. If you earn enough, you get health care of good quality. In Austria, you get average quality health care independent of what you earn.

The Smell of Freshly Baked Bread

I have a well-known weakness for freshly baked bread (and for cheese). Where do I go in Vienna when I want the smell of baked bread, you may wonder. To a grocery store of course.

Austrian grocery stores know the fact that many people are like me and they try to take advantage of this by having in-house bakeries that bake bread, semmel, or strudel quite frequently. Although I know that this is a trick to make me spend more money, I don't complain. I just love the smell too much.

But not all grocery stores are equal. Here are my views on some grocery stores in Vienna:
- Merkur: This is my favorite grocery store chain. They not only have round-the-clock fresh bread but also the best customer service.
- Billa: My second choice.
- Spar: Although they have in-house bakeries, they don't bake frequently. Moreover, They have the worst customer service. You get thrown away from the store if you are still inside 5 minutes before the closing time.
- Discount grocery stores: There are quite a few of them in Vienna. I think none of them have in-house bakeries.

No More Belly Dancing

My son was very lively while he was in his mothers belly. He made my wife virtually belly dance with his powerful and frequent kicks and occasional hiccups. Now, there is no more belly dancing I can enjoy. He was born last week. I instead enjoy his kicks while changing his diapers.

He came a little earlier than we expected. That's why he is smaller than an average baby (but still louder than his parents). He's so sweet that his mother and I are happy that we are the copyright holders.

Define me Family

Yesterday my wife and I went to the Europe's first baby fair, the so called BabyExpo Vienna. As expecting parents we were expecting an opportunity to find various child care products that you don't see in regular shops. Alas, our expectations were not met at all.

The first problem we faced was the entrance fee they requested. I'm not accustomed to pay entrance fees when I go to a shopping mall. Why would I pay any fees when I want to go a sales fair? Because I live in a non-consumer-oriented market place (it's rather an employee-oriented place, more on this in upcoming blog posts), I didn't complain. Then, I saw the rates:

• Single person: 9 Euro
• Family (including 2 adults and up to 2 children): 15 Euro

We were a family of two adults and a baby still in his mother's belly. So I wanted to pay 15 Euro. But the sales person behind the cash register said something to my surprise: "You're not considered as a family, you must pay two adult rates separately."

This is strange in a country where you and your cohabiting partner are considered almost like a married couple. You may ask whether I complained. The answer is yes. I complained to no avail. That complaints result in no difference is something many Europeans know (but still give a try). As I said, it's an employee-oriented market place. Europe is the place where waiters or other kind of employees are always right, not the customers (even though they have a job thanks to customers in the first place).

We didn't buy anything at the BabyExpo because we couldn't find anything worth buying. We could just go the the main shopping street of Vienna (Mariahilfer Str.) and find more product choices. And, we wouldn't pay any entrance fees just because we wanted to shop.

Hallo aus Wien

This is my first post for this brand new blog HalloWien. As a foreigner living in Vienna, Austria, I wanted to start a new blog and rumble on everything I experience here, from a foreigner's point of view.

Follow me and enjoy!