EMEA News Q4 2026
Austria Hosts its First Specialist Congress on ME/CFS
CS Caritas Socialis Hosts the First Specialist Congress on ME/CFS in Vienna
"What can we do now for people with ME/CFS?"
CS Caritas Socialis is holding the 1st CS ME/CFS Specialist Congress on 13 October 2026 in the Apothecary Wing of Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna. Under the motto "Knowledge. Attitude. Action.", the congress brings together leading national and international experts with professionals from nursing, medicine and ethics to address one of the most pressing issues in healthcare: the multisystem illness ME/CFS.
The congress focuses on how to provide effective support and care for people with ME/CFS, in a concrete, interprofessional and forward-looking way. It will also see the first presentation of the Eduard Spörk Prize for Quality of Life Until the End, an award recognising journalism focused on ME/CFS.
1st CS ME/CFS Specialist Congress
13 October 2026, from 8.30 am
Schönbrunn Palace, Apothecary Wing, Meidling Gate, Grünbergstrasse, 1130 Vienna, Austria
More information about the congress is available on the CS Caritas Socialis congress page.
Pioneers in Ethics and Healthcare Showing New Ways
How can healthcare be rethought when existing structures reach their limits? CS Caritas Socialis is bringing two leading international thinkers to Vienna: Prof. Dr. Giovanni Maio and Prof. Ola Didrik Saugstad.
In his lecture, "Ethics of Vulnerability", the renowned medical ethicist Giovanni Maio presents a view of humanity that sees vulnerability not as a deficit but as an integral part of being human, and from this draws out the responsibility of medicine, nursing and society.
European ME Research Group (EMERG) member - Professor Ola Didrik Saugstad - brings the perspective from Norway. At Røysumtunet, with his expert guidance, a specialised long-term care service was established for people with severe and very severe ME/CFS, with care consistently tailored to their specific needs and quality of life.
CS Nordlicht: Care for People with ME/CFS
Alongside the congress, CS Caritas Socialis supports people with ME/CFS and other post-acute infection syndromes (PAIS) through its newest service, CS Nordlicht. Its aim is to support and relieve both people with ME/CFS and their relatives.
"With CS Nordlicht, we recognise a pressing need of our time, entirely in line with the mission of CS founder Hildegard Burjan. We see you and we will not leave you alone. Our services are currently funded entirely by donations, so we need donors and sponsors."
"At CS Nordlicht, it is not the patients who have to adapt to our processes, but we who have to adapt to their needs. Our fundamental palliative approach is to alleviate suffering and enable quality of life."
The everyday lives of those affected show how urgently this service is needed. People with severe ME/CFS are often unable to leave their homes for years. They react to light, noise and even the slightest exertion with a severe worsening of their condition, and find hardly any support in a healthcare system that is not prepared for their illness. Many live with constant worry about what will happen when their own strength is no longer enough.
"I am so glad that with CS Nordlicht there is finally someone I can turn to when I can no longer take care of myself."
With CS Nordlicht, CS Caritas Socialis is building on its own history. Around 30 years ago, it played a key role in establishing hospice and palliative care in Austria, at that time also for a group of people for whom no suitable structures yet existed.
"With CS Nordlicht, we are doing pioneering work, just as we did 30 years ago when we established hospice care. Together with our donors, we want to create a model service that shows how care can succeed."
Eduard Spörk Prize: Journalism Making ME/CFS Visible
The Eduard Spörk Prize for Quality of Life Until the End will be awarded for the first time at the congress. The prize recognises journalists whose work helps make the lived experience of people with ME/CFS visible and strengthens public discussion of the illness. The award ceremony takes place on the afternoon of the congress.
"With CS Nordlicht and this congress, we are bringing knowledge about ME/CFS into healthcare. The more people pay attention and share their knowledge, the harder it will become for the healthcare system to keep ignoring those affected. The first Eduard Spörk Journalism Prize, which received 71 submissions, puts journalism about ME/CFS in the spotlight. More knowledge, more impact and, we hope, soon a better quality of life."
Source: press release from CS Caritas Socialis, 6 October 2026.
Last Update: October 2025