Optimizing health facility location for universal health care: A case study from the Philippines

Flores, Lorenzo Jaime Yu; Tonato, Ramon Rafael; Paz, Gabrielle Ann dela; Ulep, Valerie Gilbert T.

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0256821

Cited by 10 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…The related work in this field encompasses various modeling techniques, GIS applications, and patient-centric approaches to address the complex task of facility placement [17,18]. Flores et al [19] focused on healthcare FL in low and middle-income countries, particularly the Philippines. They introduced a novel cooperative covering maximal model to optimize primary care facility placement using open-source data, considering equity and efficiency parameters.…”

Section: Related Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Test Center Location Problem: A Bi-Objective Model and Algorithms

Davoodi,

Calabrese

2024

Algorithms

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The optimal placement of healthcare facilities, including the placement of diagnostic test centers, plays a pivotal role in ensuring efficient and equitable access to healthcare services. However, the emergence of unique complexities in the context of a pandemic, exemplified by the COVID-19 crisis, has necessitated the development of customized solutions. This paper introduces a bi-objective integer linear programming model designed to achieve two key objectives: minimizing average travel time for individuals visiting testing centers and maximizing an equitable workload distribution among testing centers. This problem is NP-hard and we propose a customized local search algorithm based on the Voronoi diagram. Additionally, we employ an ϵ-constraint approach, which leverages the Gurobi solver. We rigorously examine the effectiveness of the model and the algorithms through numerical experiments and demonstrate their capability to identify Pareto-optimal solutions. We show that while the Gurobi performs efficiently in small-size instances, our proposed algorithm outperforms it in large-size instances of the problem.

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Section: Related Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Test Center Location Problem: A Bi-Objective Model and Algorithms

Davoodi,

Calabrese

2024

Algorithms

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“…27. Flores, LJY. et al (2021) By utilizing open-source data and empirical work from prior healthcare research, this study offered a methodology for determining an ideal location for rural health unit (RHU) site selection.…”

Section: Salvacion a (2022)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Access to Health Services Among Low-Income Women in the Philippines: A Review

M.¹,

S.²,

V.³

et al. 2022

Int.J.Res.Publ.Rev.

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Healthcare access is the availability of medical services to prevent, identify, diagnose, and manage illnesses, diseases, disorders, and other problems that influence one's health (MU School of Medicine, 2022). Where it must provide convenience and optimal health outcomes for everyone. However, despite the attempts of the Philippine Government to provide Universal healthcare, low-income households still have a hard time accessing the coverage and using it. Low-income women have it more difficult to access healthcare due to various reasons such as inequalities, norms, age, and socioeconomic status. This article was influenced by the study of Luu, K. et al. (2022), entitled “Exploring the Role of Social Networks in Facilitating Health Service Access Among Low-Income Women in the Philippines”. With the use of available published materials from various journal databases, specifically Sage Journals, Google Scholar, and EBSCO, this review article managed to obtain literature that could support the aim of this review article. Furthermore, demographic characteristics of participants such as Approachability and the ability to perceive; Acceptability and the ability to seek; Availability, accommodation, and the ability to reach; Affordability and the ability to pay and; Appropriateness and the ability to engage — were used to gather information on why low-income women put off seeking medical attention. As a result, based on the findings of various research articles, certain women's access to health treatment hindered timely treatment, with younger women more prone than older women to put off seeking medical attention. For they prioritize their children's health, have caregiving obligations, have a hard time finding childcare, and are discouraged by the financial burden of medical expenses on their families as caregivers

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“…The location of healthcare facilities also limits access to care, with 50% of the Filipino population are without in-person healthcare access within 30 min. [3][4][5] The cost to address these issues is significant. Digital health, particularly telemedicine, is promoted as a strategic priority given the potential of these technologies to mitigate many of the ongoing financial and logistical barriers facing patients and medical facilities.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

A Building Blocks Approach to Implementing a Telehealth Clinic Model to Improve Primary Care Access in the Philippines: A Large-scale Pilot Project

Pickering, MD,

Rafaqat, MD,

Balk

et al. 2024

THMT

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A limited number of healthcare workers and cost constraints limit primary care access in the Philippines. To test telehealth as a low-cost and effective solution, a large-scale digital health clinic was implemented in the selected urban and rural communities. In collaboration with local authorities, our pilot telemedicine clinic was implemented for 3 days in January 2023. Patients were registered and their vitals were assessed before they were seen by a remote United States-based licensed physician who provided recommendations for treatment. Medical devices with real-time streaming capabilities, such as electronic stethoscopes, were utilized to enhance remote examinations. A total of 322 patients were treated at the telehealth clinic, of which 218 completed a population health survey. A large proportion of patients had a doctor visit more than 12 months prior (39.2%) and had not received a dental examination (86.3%) or an eye examination within the past year (84.4%). Most patients had access to a smartphone (69.7%). A lower proportion had access to an internet connection that was sufficient for video calls (57.9%) or a laptop (8.5%). Our clinic demonstrated that telehealth is a feasible solution to improve primary care access for disadvantaged communities in the Philippines.

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Optimizing health facility location for universal health care: A case study from the Philippines

Cited by 10 publications

References 23 publications

Test Center Location Problem: A Bi-Objective Model and Algorithms

Test Center Location Problem: A Bi-Objective Model and Algorithms

Access to Health Services Among Low-Income Women in the Philippines: A Review

A Building Blocks Approach to Implementing a Telehealth Clinic Model to Improve Primary Care Access in the Philippines: A Large-scale Pilot Project

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