Geography as a Determinant of Health: Health Services Utilization of Pediatric Respiratory Illness in a Canadian Province

Shehzad Kassam, Jesus Serrano-Lomelin, Anne Hicks, Susan Crawford, Jeffrey A. Bakal and Maria B. Ospina
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Shehzad Kassam: Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2R3, Canada
Jesus Serrano-Lomelin: Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2S2, Canada
Anne Hicks: Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 1C9, Canada
Susan Crawford: Alberta Perinatal Health Program, Alberta Health Services, Edmonton, AB T2N 2T9, Canada
Jeffrey A. Bakal: Provincial Research Data Services, Alberta Health Services, Edmonton, AB T6G 2C8, Canada
Maria B. Ospina: Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2S2, Canada

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 16, 1-17

Abstract: Respiratory diseases contribute to high healthcare utilization rates among children. Although social inequalities play a major role in these conditions, little is known about the impact of geography as a determinant of health, particularly with regard to the difference between rural and urban centers. A regional geographic analysis was conducted using health repository data on singleton births between 2005 and 2010 in Alberta, Canada. Data were aggregated according to regional health sub-zones in the province and standardized prevalence ratios (SPRs) were determined for eight respiratory diseases (asthma, influenza, bronchitis, bronchiolitis, croup, pneumonia, and other upper and other lower respiratory tract infections). The results indicate that there are higher rates of healthcare utilization in northern compared to southern regions and in rural and remote regions compared to urban ones, after accounting for both material and social deprivation. Geography plays a role in discrepancies of healthcare utilization for pediatric respiratory diseases, and this can be used to inform the provision of health services and resource allocation across various regions.

Keywords: respiratory diseases; pediatrics; geography; health inequalities (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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