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Racial/Ethnic Residential Segregation, the Distribution of Physician’s Offices and Access to Health Care: The Case of Houston, Texas

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  • Kathryn Freeman Anderson

    (Department of Sociology, University of Houston, Houston, TX 77204-3012, USA)

Abstract

Previous research has demonstrated the impacts of racial/ethnic residential segregation on access to health care, but little work has been conducted to tease out the mechanisms at play. I posit that the distribution of health care facilities may contribute to poor access to health care. In a study of the Houston area, I examine the association between residential segregation, the distribution of physician’s offices, and two health care access outcomes of having a personal physician, as well as the travel time to their office location. Using the 2010 Health of Houston Survey combined with several census products, I test these relationships in a series of spatial and multilevel models. I find that Black segregation is related to a lower density of physician’s offices. However, I find that this distribution is not related to having a personal physician, but is related to travel times, with a greater number of facilities leading to shorter travel times to the doctor. I also find that Black segregation is positively associated with travel times, and that the distribution of physician’s offices partially mediates this relationship. In sum, these findings suggest that a more equitable provision of health care resources across urban neighborhoods would mitigate some of the negative effects of segregation.

Suggested Citation

  • Kathryn Freeman Anderson, 2018. "Racial/Ethnic Residential Segregation, the Distribution of Physician’s Offices and Access to Health Care: The Case of Houston, Texas," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 7(8), pages 1-18, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jscscx:v:7:y:2018:i:8:p:119-:d:159698
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