Geographic accessibility and medical services utilization related to cardiovascular diseases in Bist Doab (Punjab)

Geographic accessibility to health care services is determined by proximity to health care services and state of transportation networks. The aim of this paper is to examine the geographical accessibility of medical facilities related to cardiovascular diseases in Bist Doab region of Punjab. The data for the present paper has been obtained from Department of Health and Family Welfare (Punjab), Punjab Health Systems Corporation as well as field survey. The results show that the study region has a good availability of ambulance service for transferring the emergency cases of cardiovascular diseases, however the density of major roads is very low along the eastern border of the region (due to undulating hilly area) and the extreme western margins of the study area. These areas of low density of major roads have lower level of geographic accessibility to health care institutions. New hospitals with specialized facilities should be established to reduce distance travelled by cardiovascular patients for seeking medical treatment. The density of motorable roads should also be increased in unfavourable areas to improve accessibility to health care services.