Population's Potential Accessibility to Specialized Palliative Care Services: A Comparative Study in Three European Countries.
BACKGROUND
Palliative care is a priority for health systems worldwide, yet equity in access remains unknown. To shed light on this issue, this study compares populations' driving time to specialized palliative care services in three countries: Ireland, Spain, and Switzerland.


METHODS
Network analysis of the population's driving time to services according to geolocated palliative care services using Geographical Information System (GIS). Percentage of the population living within a 30-min driving time, between 30 and 60 minutes, and over 60 min were calculated.


RESULTS
The percentage of the population living less than thirty minutes away from the nearest palliative care provider varies among Ireland (84%), Spain (79%), and Switzerland (95%). Percentages of the population over an hour away from services were 1.87% in Spain, 0.58% in Ireland, and 0.51% in Switzerland.


CONCLUSION
Inequities in access to specialized palliative care are noticeable amongst countries, with implications also at the sub-national level.
['van Steijn|Danny|D|0000-0002-0408-0787', 'Pons Izquierdo|Juan José|JJ|', 'Garralda Domezain|Eduardo|E|0000-0002-7532-0442', 'Sánchez-Cárdenas|Miguel Antonio|MA|0000-0002-0788-4289', 'Centeno Cortés|Carlos|C|0000-0003-3395-7039']
D005060:Europe D040362:Geographic Information Systems D006297:Health Services Accessibility D006801:Humans D007494:Ireland D010166:Palliative Care D013030:Spain
palliative care equity Europe geographical accessibility