Spatial distribution and accessibility to public sector tertiary care teaching hospitals in Karachi: A Geographic Information Systems application.

Optimal utilization of specialized curative healthcare services is contingent on spatial access to tertiary-care hospitals by the targeted population. The objectives of this study were to determine the spatial distribution of public sector tertiary-care teaching hospitals in Karachi, and to use GIS and network analysis for modeling the accessibility to these hospitals for Karachi residents. Maps of three, six, and nine kilometer buffers were created around the five selected hospitals to determine which towns of Karachi are either entirely or partially covered/accessible. Most of the towns in Karachi were covered either partially or completely by the three buffers and service areas of 3,6, and 9 kilometers around the five selected hospitals. This study highlights the limitations of using publicly available data for road network, and the need for creating and making available in public domain, comprehensive road network vector dataset in conjunction with population breakdowns by administrative subdivisions.