Jo Olivia, Kruger Estie, Tennant Marc
School of Human Sciences, University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, Perth, 6009, Australia.
Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Human Biology, University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Nedlands, Perth, 6009, Australia; International Research Collaborative Oral Health and Equity, University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, Perth, 6009, Australia.
Br Dent J. 2021 May 27. doi: 10.1038/s41415-021-3002-3.
Objective Access to transport is a common barrier to oral health. Greater dependence on public transport has shown delayed oral healthcare, lack of usual source of care and greater unmet health needs. This study examined the spatial accessibility of the population of Great Britain to public transport in providing access to oral healthcare.Methods A total of 8,791 dental practices in Great Britain were identified and geocoded. There were 10,444 rail, metro and light rail stops and 348,961 bus and tram stops. Geographic information systems were utilised to integrate the dental practice locations and public transport points to respective census tracts of each nation containing population data, deprivation measures, and classification of rural and urban areas.Results Almost all dental clinics in Great Britain were located within 400 m of bus and tram stops or 800 m of a rail, metro or light rail stop. Similarly, in Scotland and England, 92% lived within any public transport (within 400m of bus and tram stops or 800m of a rail, metro or light rail stop), and in Wales, 84.2% lived within any public transport stop. However, only 75.1%, 79.6% and 60.4% of the population of Scotland, England and Wales had access to a high-frequency bus stop, respectively. In Scotland, England and Wales, 40.7%, 33.7% and 38.3% of rural residents did not have access to any public transport and only 4.9%, 7.5% and 14.6% of the rural residents had access to an optimal bus stop, respectively. In Wales, 19.5% of older adults do not have access to a bus stop.Conclusion Some transport-disadvantaged groups do not have adequate access to public transport services. There is a compelling need to address public transport integration with oral health facilities to ensure equality in accessing integral services.
目的 交通不便往往是影响口腔健康的一个常见障碍。对公共交通的更大依赖已显示出口腔医疗保健延迟、缺乏常规医疗保健来源以及未满足的健康需求增加。本研究调查了英国人口在获得口腔医疗保健方面对公共交通的空间可达性。
方法 确定了英国总共8791家牙科诊所并进行了地理编码。有10444个铁路、地铁和轻轨站点以及348961个公交和电车站点。利用地理信息系统将牙科诊所位置和公共交通站点整合到每个国家包含人口数据、贫困程度测量以及城乡区域分类的各个普查区。
结果 英国几乎所有牙科诊所都位于距离公交和电车站400米以内或距离铁路、地铁或轻轨站800米以内。同样，在苏格兰和英格兰，92%的人居住在任何公共交通站点附近（距离公交和电车站400米以内或距离铁路、地铁或轻轨站800米以内），在威尔士，84.2%的人居住在任何公共交通站点附近。然而，苏格兰、英格兰和威尔士的人口中分别只有75.1%、79.6%和60.4%能够使用高频公交站点。在苏格兰、英格兰和威尔士，分别有40.7%、33.7%和38.3%的农村居民无法使用任何公共交通，只有4.9%、7.5%和14.6%的农村居民能够使用最优公交站点。在威尔士，19.5%的老年人无法使用公交站点。
结论 一些交通不便的群体无法充分获得公共交通服务。迫切需要解决公共交通与口腔健康设施的整合问题，以确保在获得综合服务方面的平等性。
