Abstract
Background
The inequitable distribution of health resources causes disparities in people's access to healthcare services, impacting residents’ health status and quality of life. As a result, the allocation of health resources has become a critical concern for governments when formulating healthcare policies. China is a developing country with uneven development among cities and rural areas, which lead the problem of inequity in health resources is noticeable, especially in less developed areas. Hence,we aimed to explore the spatial distribution of the average number of physicians and hospital beds in Guangxi and used spatial models to analyse the impact of economic, demographic and altitude factors on the distribution of health resources. These findings may provide a basis for the government to improve health policies.
Methods
We described the spatial patterns of the number of hospitals (NH), the number of hospital beds per 10,000 people (NHB), the number of practising physicians per 10,000 people (NPP), in Guangxi. Then, we explored the economic and demographic factors that may influence the spatial distribution of NHB and NPP through the geographically weighted regression (GWR) and multiscale geographically weighted regression (MGWR) models.
Results
Guangxi’s NH (Moran's I = 0.127, p = 0.006), NHB (Moran's I = 1.363, p = 0.001), and NPP (Moran's I = 1.289, p < 0.001) exhibited significant autocorrelation and heterogeneity in spatial distribution, significantly clustering and forming hotspots in Nanning, Liuzhou, Guilin and Wuzhou. The MGWR model showed spatial regression of NHB with the proportion of population ≥ 60 years old (EV = 0.337, p = 0.001), years of schooling (EV = 0.409, p = 0.002), general public income (EV = 0.228, p = 0.023) and average elevation (EV = 0.225, p = 0.042), while NPP was related to population density (EV = 0.230, p = 0.009), proportion of population ≥ 60 years old (EV = 0.250, p = 0.003), total social consumption (EV = 0.241, p = 0.010), etc. There were significant spatial regression relationships between GDP per capita (EV = 0.324, p < 0.001) and the proportion of urban dwellers (EV = 0.172, p = 0.033).
Conclusions
The spatial heterogeneity of healthcare resources in Guangxi is related to the enqual development of its socioeconomic, culture and population and is affected by topographical factors. The healthcare resources in Guangxi are clustered in areas with a relatively good degree of social development, such as Nanning, Liuzhou, Guilin and Wuzhou, with both absolute and relative deficiencies and with different factors influencing the number of beds per capita and the number of doctors per capita. Moreover, feasible ways to meet the demand for medical resources in different regions should be explored.