Med Ges Gesch. 1999 ; 18(): 81-102.

[The "Lebenswarthische homopathische Kinderspital" in Vienna (1879-1914): notes on the history of the first homeopathic children's hospital]

Lucae C.

Homeopathy was brought to Austria in 1817, rapidly spreading throughout the country. In the late 1870s a homeopathic physician started a foundation to build a children's hospital in Vienna. As a result, the first homeopathic children's hospital in the world opened in Vienna in 1879, under the management of the order of the Barmherzige Schwestern. Treatment was free of charge, allowing even the poor children of the city to be admitted. A single homeopathic physician was responsible for all the patients, most of whom suffered from infectious diseases. Apparently the success rate of the homeopathic treatments was comparable to that of "allopathic" hospitals. The children's hospital remained in operation until World War I, when it was converted into a military hospital.