Regional differences in health resource allocation: a longitudinal study in the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle, China

Abstract

ObjectiveTo analyse regional differences in health resource allocation in the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle.DesignA longitudinal analysis that collected data on health resource allocation from 2017 to 2021.SettingThe number of beds, health technicians, licensed (assistant) physicians, registered nurses and financial allocations per 1000 population in the 42 regions of Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle were used for the analysis.MethodsThe entropy weight technique for order preference by similarity to an ideal solution (TOPSIS) method and the rank sum ratio (RSR) method were used to evaluate the health resource allocation.ResultsThe number of licensed (assistant) physicians per 1000 population in the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle (3.01) was lower than the average in China (3.04) in 2021. According to the entropy weight–TOPSIS method, Yuzhong in Chongqing had the largest C-value and the highest ranking. Jiangbei in Chongqing and Chengdu and Ya’an in Sichuan Province had higher C-values and were ranked in the top 10. Jiangjin, Hechuan, Tongnan and Zhongxian in Chongqing and Guang’an in Sichuan Province had lower C-values and were all ranked after the 30th place. According to the RSR method, the 42 regions were divided into three grades of good, medium and poor. The health resource allocations of Yuzhong, Jiangbei, Nanchuan, Jiulongpo and Shapingba in Chongqing and Chengdu and Ya’an in Sichuan Province were of good grade, those of Tongnan, Jiangjin, Yubei and Dazu in Chongqing and Guang’an and Dazhou in Sichuan Province were of poor grade, and the rest of the regions were of medium grade.ConclusionThe regional differences in health resource allocation in the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle were more obvious, the health resource allocation in Chongqing was more polarised and the health resource allocation in Sichuan Province was more balanced, but the advantaged regions were not prominent enough.

The role of Construction of Healthcare Consortium on the allocation of human resources for primary care resources and its equity in China

“…One potential inference that has been made is that the income level of the economy impacts the total amount of health resources which in turn influences the effectiveness of implementation in policies of CHC which in turn affects the equity of allocation in HR of PHC. According to previous studies, the allocation of health resources is significantly and positively associated with the level of economic income [34], higher-income regions have more financial resources than lower-income regions that can be invested in promoting a more optimized allocation of physical and human resources for health [35], while the human, physical, and financial resources of health collectively form the basis for efficient implementation of the policies in CHC. Based on this, a new question arises: Is it possible that the CHC will aggravate the polarization of HR for PHC in high-income and low-income areas, leading to an increase in the level of inequality?…”