Germany’s first Longevity Institute opened in Berlin on 18 November 2023
The Berlin-based AIVA Institute for Vitality & Aesthetics opened its doors on 18 November with a host of local celebrities in attendance. The aim of AIVA is to harmonise a wide range of innovative treatments in such a way that patients can live healthier, more vital and more beautiful lives for longer. With a total of 1,600 guests, including District Mayor of Marzahn-Hellersdorf and District Councillor for Economic Development, Roads, Green Spaces, Environmental and Nature Conservation, Human Resources & Finance, Nadja Zivkovic, former Bachelorette and influencer Nadine Klein, basketball world champion Johannes Thiemann (ALBA Berlin), Hertha BSC player Julius Gottschalk and Dr Sigrid Evelyn Nikutta, Member of the Management Board of Deutsche Bahn AG. The institute covers 1,400 square metres and has 18 treatment rooms, an operating theatre and its own VIP area. It is located in Berlin-Biesdorf on the grounds of the Gesundheitscampus Berlin and in the immediate vicinity of the Unfallkrankenhaus Berlin. The team around our head doctor Dott. Mag. Andrea Caletti consists of 20 people. AIVA offers a comprehensive treatment portfolio in the fields of dermatology, prevention, regeneration and aesthetics and is therefore aimed at an audience aged between 18-80+.
The institute is intended to serve as a longevity hub that cooperates with urban policy makers to extend a modern healthcare system from Berlin beyond Germany. The vision of the founders is to democratise regenerative and aesthetic medicine in order to lead not just a long, but a long and healthy life. According to a recent calculation by the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in Rostock, one in three girls and one in ten boys born today will reach their 100th birthday. However, figures from the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth show that 98 per cent of 80-year-olds and older are receiving medical treatment for at least one illness. On average, there are 4.7 illnesses per person. Longevity offers enormous potential to change this.
The foundation underlines the significance of Berlin as an important centre for the healthcare industry. “We see the potential for Berlin to become a metropolis of global significance in this area too and to transform Germany into a blue zone. We are still the privately financed spearhead. In cooperation with the city of Berlin, we want to roll out the concept on a broader scale,” says Nikolai Burkart from the parent company Upwind Holding GmbH.
Dr Daniel Dettling, Managing Director of Gesundheitsstadt Berlin e.V. on the importance of longevity for Berlin: “We want to grow older without being old. Demographic change offers a demand for healthy life years, which is why politicians need to do something. We at Gesundheitsstadt Berlin want to launch an initiative to establish Berlin as a longevity city and provide the necessary infrastructure for a long, healthy life.”
(from left to right) Nikolai Burkart, Managing Director of AIVA and Upwind Holding GmbH, ceremonially opens the institute
the institute with district mayor Nadja Zivkovic.
Copyright: Lars Hübner/AIVA
Nadja Zivkovic, District Mayor of Marzahn-Hellersdorf and District Councillor for Economic Development, Roads, Green Spaces, Environmental and Nature Conservation, Human Resources & Finance, cut the ribbon together with Nikolai Burkart, Managing Director of AIVA, at the opening ceremony.
“Modern medicine ensures that the life expectancy of the population is already over 90 years. However, our healthcare system is only geared towards people who live to be 50-70 years old. That’s why we urgently need modernisation. As a longevity institute, AIVA has great potential to give Berlin’s economy a decisive push in the right direction.”
Dr Todd McAllister, a longevity expert from the USA, was a guest at the event: “In the USA, the topic has been firmly anchored in the modern healthcare industry for several years now. It’s great to see that forward-looking countries like Germany are now following the same path and making longevity available to everyone instead of being a product of the rich”.
