Equity in distribution of intensive care beds in Iran with Gini coefficient and Lorenz curve approach

Equal access to health care services is among the basic human rights. Unequal distribution of hospital resources especially intensive care beds encounter access to this critical care with problem. intensive care beds is one of most valuable and important sources of health care system that its unequal and inequity distribution among our country provinces more over transportation of emergency patients can cause irreparable complications. The aim of this study was to assess degree of equity in distribution of CCU1, ICU2, Post CCU3, Post ICU4, NICU5 beds among provinces of country.

The present applied study has been written by descriptive and analytical method. Needed data has been collected form the latest documents in ministry of health, treatment and medical education and statistical center of Iran. The amount of distributional equity calculated using EXCELL2007 by more applied equity indices in this field, Gini coefficient and Lorenz curve. Also the geographical concentration map, for intensive care beds in country, was drawn which is surely necessary for policy making in the health field.

The total number of CCU, ICU, PICU, PCCU and NICU beds were 4194, 3720, 291, 4097 and 1129 respectively. The maximum values for any intensive care beds by province were recorded in Tehran. The most proportion of CCU, ICU, PICU, PCCU and NICU beds per 100,000 people revealed in Yazd, Tehran, Yazd, Qom and Khorasan Razavi provinces respectively. Finally Gini coefficients for CCU, ICU, PICU, PCCU and NICU distributions were calculated 0.13, 0.17, 0.15, 0.11 and 0.23 respectively.

Though geographic maps of intensive care beds concentration show different concentration of this bed among provinces but this difference in Gini index is negligible. Finally it can be concluded that approximately absolute equality in distribution of intensive care beds-except NICU- observed among our country provinces.