Physician density: will we ever close the gap?
Abstract Objective Physician density is a crucial element of a well-functioning health system. Previous research has investigated factors affecting country-level physician supply. To date, however, no evidence has been provided about the patterns of convergence in physician density among countries....
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2023-05-01
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| Series: | BMC Research Notes |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13104-023-06353-8 |
| _version_ | 1797818207608766464 |
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| author | Fabrizio Ferretti Michele Mariani Elena Sarti |
| author_facet | Fabrizio Ferretti Michele Mariani Elena Sarti |
| author_sort | Fabrizio Ferretti |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Objective Physician density is a crucial element of a well-functioning health system. Previous research has investigated factors affecting country-level physician supply. To date, however, no evidence has been provided about the patterns of convergence in physician density among countries. This paper thus tested club convergence in physician density in 204 countries worldwide from 1990 to 2019. A nonlinear time-varying factor model was adopted to identify potential clubs, wherein groups of countries tend to converge towards the same level of physician density. Our primary purpose was to document the potential long-lasting disparity in future global physician distribution. Results Despite physician density increasing in all regions globally from 1990 to 2019, we found no evidence in favor of the hypothesis of global convergence. Conversely, the clustering algorithm successfully identified three main patterns (i.e., three final clubs). With few exceptions, the results indicated an uneven physician distribution between the majority of North and Sub-Saharan African countries (where physician density would remain well below the estimated threshold of at least 70% of the Universal Health Coverage Services Index) and the rest of the world. These findings support the WHO's global strategy to reverse the chronic under-investment in human resources for health. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-13T09:04:44Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-597f2a259eec49da9853f170ec661b61 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1756-0500 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-13T09:04:44Z |
| publishDate | 2023-05-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Research Notes |
| spelling | doaj.art-597f2a259eec49da9853f170ec661b612023-05-28T11:07:39ZengBMCBMC Research Notes1756-05002023-05-011611610.1186/s13104-023-06353-8Physician density: will we ever close the gap?Fabrizio Ferretti0Michele Mariani1Elena Sarti2Department of Communication and Economics, University of Modena and Reggio EmiliaDepartment of Communication and Economics, University of Modena and Reggio EmiliaDepartment of Economics – Marco Biagi, University of Modena and Reggio EmiliaAbstract Objective Physician density is a crucial element of a well-functioning health system. Previous research has investigated factors affecting country-level physician supply. To date, however, no evidence has been provided about the patterns of convergence in physician density among countries. This paper thus tested club convergence in physician density in 204 countries worldwide from 1990 to 2019. A nonlinear time-varying factor model was adopted to identify potential clubs, wherein groups of countries tend to converge towards the same level of physician density. Our primary purpose was to document the potential long-lasting disparity in future global physician distribution. Results Despite physician density increasing in all regions globally from 1990 to 2019, we found no evidence in favor of the hypothesis of global convergence. Conversely, the clustering algorithm successfully identified three main patterns (i.e., three final clubs). With few exceptions, the results indicated an uneven physician distribution between the majority of North and Sub-Saharan African countries (where physician density would remain well below the estimated threshold of at least 70% of the Universal Health Coverage Services Index) and the rest of the world. These findings support the WHO's global strategy to reverse the chronic under-investment in human resources for health.https://doi.org/10.1186/s13104-023-06353-8African countriesConvergenceClubsLog-t regressionPhysician density |
| spellingShingle | Fabrizio Ferretti Michele Mariani Elena Sarti Physician density: will we ever close the gap? BMC Research Notes African countries Convergence Clubs Log-t regression Physician density |
| title | Physician density: will we ever close the gap? |
| title_full | Physician density: will we ever close the gap? |
| title_fullStr | Physician density: will we ever close the gap? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Physician density: will we ever close the gap? |
| title_short | Physician density: will we ever close the gap? |
| title_sort | physician density will we ever close the gap |
| topic | African countries Convergence Clubs Log-t regression Physician density |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13104-023-06353-8 |
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