AOP Orphan – now AOP Health – was founded in 1996 by Dr. Rudolf Widmann with the aim of developing and providing therapy options for patients with rare diseases, and then introducing the therapy options first in Austria, the European core countries of AOP Health, and finally in the international market.
Founding
Founding.
How it all started:
Dr. Rudolf Widmann
I worked in large international pharmaceutical companies for several years and observed that there were some therapy options for rare diseases, but they did not reach the large majority of the patients.
Why did you found AOP Health?
When founding AOP Health in 1996 – as AOP Orphan – my aim was to make targeted treatment available to the maximum number of patients with rare diseases. I realized that these patients are frequently left alone in their suffering. For me as an entrepreneur, the complex environment of rare diseases was a great challenge, but also an opportunity to be successful in this niche.
What role did AOP Health’s sense of entrepreneurial responsibility play in the founding of the company?
Entrepreneurial responsibility is not an additionally imposed obligation for AOP Health, but the attitude that played an indispensable role at the very time the company was founded. AOP Health’s objective to provide effective help for persons with rare diseases originated from this sense of responsibility and has made the company what it is today.