GIS in the study of the spatial organization of medical tourism infrastructure: methodology and practical approaches

DOI: 10.35595/2414-9179-2024-1-30-208-223

View or download the article (Eng)

About the Authors

Nikolai A. Grudtsyn

St. Petersburg State University, Institute of Earth Science, Department of Regional Policy and Political Geography,
33-35, 10th line of Vasil’evsky island, St. Petersburg, 199178, Russia,
E-mail: poxes@yandex.ru

Anatoly I. Chistobaev

St. Petersburg State University, Institute of Earth Science, Department of Regional Policy and Political Geography,
33-35, 10th line of Vasil’evsky island, St. Petersburg, 199178, Russia,
E-mail: chistobaev40@mail.ru

Evgeniy S. Kulakovskiy

St. Petersburg State University, Institute of Earth Science, Department of regional policy and political geography,
33-35, 10th line of Vasil’evsky island, St. Petersburg, 199178, Russia,

Voronezh State University, Department of Socio-Economic Geography and Regional Studies,
40, Kholzunova str., Voronezh, 394068, Russia,

E-mail: evgeny.kyl@yandex.ru

Abstract

The article is devoted to analysing and assessing the possibilities of using the theoretical foundations of geographic information systems (GIS), the methodology, and techniques of GIS technologies in identifying trends and justifying strategies for the development and spatial organisation of medical tourism. It is shown that medical tourism is a dynamically developing sector of the global economy, which allows harnessing the achievements of medicine and the opportunities of tourism to strengthen public health and develop elements of healthcare systems, thereby forming the basis for the formulation of state and regional policies to stimulate the development of this type of activity in the country and/or region, thus enhancing their positions on the global stage, ensuring the interaction of medical and tourist institutions with authorities and business structures in their promotion on the world market. It is established that case studies analysis using GIS technologies allows for identifying spatial patterns in the provision of medical care and the provision of related services to patients from other regions and countries, visualising the geographical distribution of medical institutions, assessing the accessibility of medical care and recreational facilities for rehabilitation and recreation, analysing the travel routes of medical tourists, and ultimately providing recommendations for optimising the formation and subsequent development of medical tourism clusters. An illustration of visualising the obtained results based on heat maps, highlighting areas with high or low concentrations of medical tourism resources and densities of infrastructure elements, is provided. Singapore has been chosen as an experimental site to test GIS technologies’ effectiveness in achieving this research’s goal, where medical tourism has gained significant development and has become an important source of income for government and business structures.

Keywords

health preservation, tourism industry, geosystems, medical tourism clusters, Singapore

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For citation: Grudtsyn N.A., Chistobaev A.I., Kulakovskiy E.S. GIS in the study of the spatial organization of medical tourism infrastructure: methodology and practical approaches. InterCarto. InterGIS. Moscow: MSU, Faculty of Geography, 2024. V. 30. Part 1. P. 208–223. DOI: 10.35595/2414-9179-2024-1-30-208-223