Modelling Best Locations for Stop Smoking Services at the Small Area Level in Leeds, UK

摘要

Finding optimal locations for health care service provision is a constant concern of health geography. The aim of this paper is to provide a clearer understanding of the geographical variations of smoking and to locate stop smoking services more within areas of high need at the small area. Due to the fact that resources are limited, this paper estimates the smoking population at the small area level using spatial mircrosimulation. Further, location-allocation models are applied to locate facilities optimal based on the estimated smokers. Various what-if scenarios can be modelled and examples are highlighted which is especially supportive for health care planners.