Geography of primary healthcare in Forsyth County, North Carolina
- UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
- Meagan N. Boyter (Creator)
- Institution
- The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )
- Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/
- Advisor
- Rick Bunch
Abstract: Health care in the United States has been a contentious subject for many years and various aspects of health care have been subject to numerous legislative debates, news pieces, and research papers. One subject that has not been focused on enough is primary healthcare accessibility in small and medium urban areas. This study seeks to fill in the gap with a focus on Forsyth County, North Carolina, a medium sized county. This study uses Geographic Information Science (GIS) to measure the distance from Census block groups to the nearest primary care facility. Data used for analysis included primary care facilities in Forsyth County and facilities just outside of the county limits. Block group demographic data was obtained from the United States Census Bureau. Most block groups in Forsyth County were close to a facility with most being around one mile to the nearest facility. The county’s biggest city, Winston-Salem, had the most facilities and were the closest to facilities overall. The rural edges of the county had fewer facilities and were further away from facilities. This study does not account from population behavior, as residents may not use their nearest facility. Factors for this include cost and transportation. This study does provide a foundation for future studies in Forsyth County and in other small and medium sized urban areas.
Geography of primary healthcare in Forsyth County, North Carolina
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Created on 12/1/2020
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Additional Information
- Publication
- Thesis
- Language: English
- Date: 2020
- Keywords
- Geography, GIS, Healthcare, Urban Geography
- Subjects
- Primary care (Medicine) $z North Carolina $z Forsyth County
- Forsyth County (N.C.) $a Geography