Informing Planning To Address Health Care Disparities: Assessing Spatial Accessibility To Health Care Using Gis Analysis

Abstract

Ability to physically get to a primary healthcare provider has been one of the issues that has led to healthcare disparities in the US. As the number of people that can get insurance grows, spatial/transportation accessibility to primary healthcare becomes an even bigger issue and a growing concern for the overall population. The aim of this study is to examine spatial pat-terns of primary-care health professionals' availability and spatial accessi-bility travel time using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) analysis techniques. Generalized travel time to locations of NPs and PCPs were de-veloped using network analysis and primary health care service areas were delineated. Additionally, global correlation statistical methods and network analysis were conducted to analyze populations to be considered as medi-cally underserved due to limited spatial accessibility to the primary health professionals. Urban areas show higher clusters of spatial availability and less travel time. However, although urban areas have a large number of healthcare providers, some areas are more likely to have a lower clustering pattern that reflects limited spatial accessibility. Compared to physicians, accessibility to NPs has a tendency to take much longer travel time and is mostly concentrated in rural areas. The understanding of health care spatial accessibility gaps at a much more granular level can inform planners and health policy maker to coordinate efforts in order to address this problem in a much more targeted fashion. The understanding of health care spatial accessibility gaps at a much more granular level can inform planners and health policy maker to coordinate efforts in order to address this problem in a much more targeted fashion.

Publication Date

1-1-2015

Publication Title

CUPUM 2015 - 14th International Conference on Computers in Urban Planning and Urban Management

Document Type

Article; Proceedings Paper

Personal Identifier

scopus

Socpus ID

85026431502 (Scopus)

Source API URL

https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/85026431502

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