A geospatial study of the coverage of catheterization laboratory facilities (cath labs) and the travel time required to reach them in East Java, Indonesia

Abstract

Coronary heart disease is a non-communicable disease whose treatment is closely related to infrastructure, such as diagnostic imaging equipment visualizing arteries and chambers of the heart (cath lab) and infrastructure that supports access to healthcare. This research is intended as a preliminary geospatial study to carry out initial measurements of health facility coverage at the regional level, survey available supporting data and provide input on problems in future research. Data on cath lab presence was gathered through direct survey, while population data was taken from an open-source geospatial system. The cath lab service coverage was obtained by analysis based on a Geographical Information System (GIS) specific tool to evaluate travel time from the sub-district centre to the nearest cath lab facility. The number of cath labs in East Java has increased from 16 to 33 in the last six years and the 1-hour access time increased from 24.2% to 53.8%. However, accessibility remains a problem as16.5% of the total population of East Java cannot access a cath lab even within 2 hours. Thus, additional cath lab facilities are required to provide ideal healthcare coverage. Geospatial analysis is the tool to determine the optimal cath lab distribution.