The essence of neurorehabilitation - a philosophical interpretation
Heinrich Binder, Professor for Neurology, Chairman of the Special Interest Group/WFNR “Neurophilosophy” together with Giorgio Sandrini
Neurological rehabilitation affects individuals whose actions and behavior are not adapted to their living environment. Their ability to act is therefore restricted.
Thereby one has to differentiate between general categorical capacity to act and individual capacity, which depends on specific intrinsic and extrinsic conditions. For individual capacity, the term agency is used as opposed to mere events in one’s life.
Agency is a central part of human nature. In addition to cognition and thinking, agency requires emotion and motivation as mediators between cognition and action.
While the intrinsic conditions result from the pathology or dysfunction of the nervous system, the external conditions represent the living environment (Husserls “Lebenswelt”) of the individual. This includes real social conditions and personal biographical experiences which have an influence on the subjective image of man. In this Husserl speaks of a world of simple intersubjective experiences (“Welt der schlichten intersubjektiven Erfahrungen”). Of course this subjective image includes also sociological (Dahrendorfs homo sociologicus), economic and cultural aspects.
Motivation has already been mentioned above. Motivation has intentionality and is part of human nature in terms of striving for a good life, which is expressed in the ongoing basic feeling of satisfaction with the way of life, but also in accidental happiness. With regard to the good life, the individual is in a constant state of tension between wanting and the limitations of his or her possibilities. Reflected subjectivism speaks of an informed desire account. This touches on the question of basic needs such as: existential safety, physical integrity, performance, emotional security, self-development, appreciation of social status. Of course there are different priorities. This brings us back to the limitations by neurological dysfunction and the central concerns, the essence of neurological rehabilitation from which everything else can be derived: agency and good life.
Short Bio
BINDER Heinrich, MD, Professor for Neurology
1965 – 1972 Faculty of Medicine at University Vienna; MD since doctorate at 1972, June 6th
1972 – 1978 University Hospital for Neurology, Vienna – residency
1975-1990 Neurological consultant in 5 Viennese pediatric hospitals, in the interim also in one orthopedic hospital
since 1978 Neurologic and psychiatric specialist
1982 Lecturer for neurology, (“venia docendi”)
1984 -1989 Senior staff member at the Viennese University Neurological Clinic
1985 – 2008 Founding member and Secretary General of the Austrian Society for Neurorehabilitation
since 1988 Professor for Neurology, University Vienna
1989 – 2016 Head of the Neurological Hospital “Maria Theresien-Schlössel”, from 2002 transferred to the Otto Wagner Spital, now named “Neurological Center MariaTheresien-Schlössel”
1194 – 2007 Head of Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Restorative Neurology and Neuromodulation together with Franz Gerstenbrand
2008 – 2017 Deputy Head of Landsteiner Institute for Neurorehabilitation and Space Medicine
2009 Founding member and Founding President of European Federation neurorehabilitation Societies
2008-2015 President of the Austrian Society for Neurorehabilitation
2010-2019 Chairman of the WFNR-SIG “Early Neurorehabilitation”
Since 2017 Director, Health Policy Group AOER-Organization for Economic Relations
Since 2019 Neurological consultant ADELI Rehabilitation Center Piestany/Slovakia
Since 2021 Chairman of the Special Interest Group/WFNR “Neurophilosophy” together with Giorgio Sandrini
Memberships
- Member of the Management Committee of the World Federation NeuroRehabilitation (WFNR)
- Member of the Executive Board of the European Federation of Neurorerahbilitation Societies (EFNR)
- Vice-President of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Austrian Neurorehabilitation Society (OEGNR)
- Member of the Managing Board of the International Danube Symposium
- Member of the Editorial Board of ”Journal of Medicine and Life”:
- Member of the Advisory Board of “Confinia Cephalalgica et Neurologica”
