How Does Cross-City Patient Mobility Impact the Spatial Equity of Healthcare in China?

Bowen Xiang, Wei Wei (), Fang Guo and Mengyao Hong
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Bowen Xiang: School of Urban Design, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China
Wei Wei: School of Urban Design, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China
Fang Guo: School of Urban Design, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China
Mengyao Hong: School of Urban Design, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China

Land, 2025, vol. 14, issue 2, 1-17

Abstract: The phenomenon of patient mobility is becoming increasingly frequent, altering the actual service ranges of hospitals across various cities. However, its impact on the spatial equity of healthcare services at the national scale has yet to be fully explored. This paper aims to reveal the impact of intercity patient mobility on healthcare equity in China. Using one million patient mobility records from online healthcare platforms, we construct the 2023 Cross-City Patient Mobility Network in China and identify the patterns of cross-city patient mobility. Furthermore, we employ the Dagum Gini coefficient to measure the spatial disparities in per capita healthcare services before and after patient mobility. The results show that: (1) cross-city patient mobility exhibits administrative boundary effects and reflects the administrative hierarchy system, yet megacities extend their healthcare service ranges beyond provincial and urban agglomeration boundaries; (2) patient mobility enhances the equity of per capita healthcare services at both intra-provincial and inter-provincial levels, with inter-provincial disparities contributing significantly more than intra-provincial disparities—a trend further reinforced by patient mobility. This study not only provides a methodological framework for understanding the impact of patient mobility on the healthcare system but also offers empirical support for public health policymaking.

Keywords: patient mobility; healthcare services; distribution equitability; spatial analysis; health geography (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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