Distribution of Private Dental Healthcare Facilities in Riyadh City: A GIS-Based Approach

Najla S. Alrejaye (), Faisal H. Alonazi, Zaid M. Alonazi, Rahf S. Alobaidi, Asma B. Alsaleh, Alanoud A. Alshami, Sultan A. Alshamrani and Seena T. Kaithathara
Additional contact information
Najla S. Alrejaye: Department of Dental Services, King Abdulaziz Medical City, Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs, Riyadh 11426, Saudi Arabia
Faisal H. Alonazi: Internship Unit, College of Dentistry, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh 11481, Saudi Arabia
Zaid M. Alonazi: Internship Unit, College of Dentistry, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh 11481, Saudi Arabia
Rahf S. Alobaidi: Internship Unit, College of Dentistry, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh 11481, Saudi Arabia
Asma B. Alsaleh: Internship Unit, College of Dentistry, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh 11481, Saudi Arabia
Alanoud A. Alshami: Internship Unit, College of Dentistry, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh 11481, Saudi Arabia
Sultan A. Alshamrani: Internship Unit, College of Dentistry, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh 11481, Saudi Arabia
Seena T. Kaithathara: Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, King Abdullah International Medical Research Center, King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs, Riyadh 11481, Saudi Arabia

IJERPH, 2024, vol. 21, issue 7, 1-12

Abstract: Background: The dental healthcare private sector in Riyadh city has been growing rapidly over the past few years; however, there is a lack of information on the accessibility and spatial distribution of private dental healthcare facilities (PDHFs) in the area. This study aimed to evaluate the spatial distribution of PDHFs in Riyadh city in relation to population density in each sub-municipality. Methods: The current information regarding the number, location, and operability of PDHFs in Riyadh city was obtained from the Ministry of Health. A total of 632 operating PDHFs were included with the precise location plotted on Quantum Geographic Information System software (version 3.32.1, Essen, Germany) using Google Earth. Four levels of buffer zones—1 km, 3 km, 5 km, and >5 km—were determined. The population statistics and mean monthly individual income per district were gathered from Zadd.910ths. Microsoft Excel (version 16.0, Microsoft, Redmond, WA, USA) and RStudio software (version 4.1.3, Posit Software, PBC, Boston, MA, USA) were used for additional data analysis. Results: There was an overall ratio of one PDHF per 9958 residents in Riyadh city. Olaya and Maather sub-municipalities had the largest PDHF-to-population ratios: (1:4566) and (1:4828), respectively. Only 36.3% of the city’s total area was within a 1 km buffer zone from a PDHF. There was an overall weak positive correlation between the number of PDHFs and the total area in each sub-municipality (r = 0.29), and the distribution of PDHFs was uneven corresponding to the area (G* = 0.357). Conclusions: There was an uneven distribution of PDHFs in Riyadh city. Some areas were underserved while others were overserved in several sub-municipalities. Policy-makers and investors are encouraged to target underserved areas rather than areas with significant clustering to improve access to care.

Keywords: accessibility; location; geographic information system; dental clinics; population; Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/21/7/959/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/21/7/959/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:21:y:2024:i:7:p:959-:d:1440305

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().