Health Research Award for thesis on climate resilience

Kleines Gruppenfoto mit Preisträgerin

v.l. Departmentleiter Gesundheit & Soziales Hochschule Burgenland, Erwin Gollner; Preisträgerin Eli-sabeth Glück Hochschule Burgenland; Arun Puthenkalam absolvierte ein Bachelorstudium an der Hoch-schule Burgenland und wurde für seine Masterarbeit (FH Joanneum) prämiert; Institutsleiterin Gesund-heits- und Tourismusmanagement der FH Joannuem, Eva Adamer-König.Hochschule Burgenland, Erwin Gollner; Preisträgerin Eli-sabeth Glück Hochschule Burgenland; Arun Puthenkalam absolvierte ein Bachelorstudium an der Hoch-schule Burgenland und wurde für seine Masterarbeit (FH Joanneum) prämiert; Institutsleiterin Gesund-heits- und Tourismusmanagement der FH Joannuem, Eva Adamer-König.

The Health Research Award 2026 was presented in four categories at the Austrian Hospital Management Congress in Eisenstadt. Elisabeth Glück, graduate and employee of the Burgenland University of Applied Sciences from the Department of Health & Social Affairs, took second place in the Climate and Health category.

Eisenstadt, 12 May 2026 Climate change is presenting the healthcare sector with ever greater health and organisational challenges. The work of Elisabeth Glück from the Master's degree programme in Health Promotion and Human Resource Management examines how healthcare facilities can be better prepared for these consequences. To this end, the young researcher developed a quality management process that supports hospitals in permanently integrating climate adaptation, fewer emissions and sustainable measures into their processes.

Healthcare employees were directly involved by means of a focus group and an expert interview. "A climate-resilient healthcare system is important in order to protect the population and contribute to climate protection at the same time," explains Glück. The results show: So far, often only individual measures have been implemented. In order for healthcare facilities to be able to adapt to climate change in the long term, what is needed above all are

  • solid structures,
  • more knowledge transfer,
  • training
  • and a management team that actively considers the issue of climate.

The biggest hurdles include a lack of human resources and knowledge gaps, Glück found. Fully integrating the topic into the company structure remains a major challenge. The work provides practical steps and prioritised topics for the institutional anchoring of climate-relevant quality objectives.

About the author
Elisabeth Glück, born in 1999, completed the HLW for Social Management at Caritas in Graz and a Bachelor's degree in Health and Nursing at the FH Joanneum. She then went on to complete a part-time Master's degree programme in Health Promotion and Human Resource Management at the University of Applied Sciences Burgenland in Pinkafeld. After several years in the health and nursing profession, she moved to the Department of Health & Social Affairs at Burgenland University of Applied Sciences as a research assistant in 2024.

Registration for the Master's degree programmes at Burgenland University of Applied Sciences is possible until 31 May at www.hochschule-burgenland.at. After this date, there may still be places available.

Enquiry notes: Mag.a Christiane Staab │ Marketing and Communication │ University of Applied Sciences Burgenland GmbH │ Tel: +43 (0)5 7705 3537 │ E-Mail: christiane.staab(at)hochschule-burgenland.at

# Gepostet in:
News, Presse, Aktuelles

Back
Teilen:facebooktwitter