Spatio-temporal Inequalities in Healthcare Facilities: A case study in Undivided Medinipur District, West Bengal, India

The quality and quantity of health infrastructure are essential elements for the overall human development of a nation. But as per the report of WHO & World Bank (2017), at least half of the world’s population cannot obtain essential health services. Keeping in mind the above-mentioned notation, the present study focuses on the spatio-temporal disparities in healthcare infrastructure among fifty-four blocks under the undivided Medinipur district, by computing Health Infrastructure Index (HII) on the basis of thirteen selected indicators using the Deprivation Index Method, for two temporal scales i.e. for the year 2001 and 2011. The study found that there exists inter-block disparity within the region regarding the availability and accessibility of basic healthcare infrastructure with respect to the population pressure of that region. The study argued for policy implementation by the local government for improving the underdeveloped pockets within the study area.