Map Details – Vulnerable Areas Along Louisiana’s Mississippi Delta Lack Geographic Access to Rural Health Clinics (RHC)

Impact Statement

Although approximately 73% of Louisiana’s rural population lives within a 15-minute drive of a Rural Health Clinic, there are still rural areas, particularly along the vulnerable Mississippi delta, that lack proximity to these resources.

Vulnerable Areas Along Louisiana's Mississippi Delta Lack Geographic Access to Rural Health Clinics (RHC)

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There are 168 certified RHCs throughout Louisiana. These sites, certified with assistance from the Louisiana Department of Health, provide critical primary care access points to residents in rural areas. Approximately 73% of Louisiana’s rural population lives within a 15 minute drive of an RHC, shown on the map in yellow. Despite broad geographic access to RHCs in rural Louisiana, vulnerable neighborhoods along the Mississippi delta still lack proximity to these clinics.

ArcGIS Pro

Neighborhood Deprivation Index (Messer et. Al 2006. Retrieved from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17031568/) ; List of active Rural Health Clinics from the Louisiana Department of Health Division of Rural Health; Rural Urban Commuting Area (RUCA) codes: (USDA 2010. Retrieved from: https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/rural-urban-commuting-area-codes.aspx)

The neighborhood deprivation index is a composite measure that was created to quantify exposure to social correlates of health in different census block groups. This measure was published in 2006. Fifteen-minute drive times displayed on the map were calculated using the ArcGIS network analysis feature. These drive times do not take into account delays due to time of day or traffic flow. For the purposes of this map, “rural population” was defined using the Rural Urban Commuting Area (RUCA) codes. Individuals living in census tracts with a RUCA code of 4-10 were defined as rural. The percent of rural population within a fifteen-minute drive of an RHC was determined by using the ArcGIS Spatial Selection tool to identify block groups with population-weighted centroids located within rural census tracts. The total population of block groups within a 15 minute drive was divided by the sum of the population of all rural block groups.

This map will be used to demonstrate to stakeholders the extent to which the Louisiana Department of Health has been able to assist in the certification of RHCs and to help keep the doors open at these vital care access points. The map will also be used to identify Parishes and census tracts where more access to RHCs is needed.

Anna Hamilton, Evaluation Manager
Well-Ahead Louisiana
anna.hamilton1@la.gov
504-568-3009

Anna L. Hamilton, Well-Ahead Louisiana. Accessed from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Chronic Disease GIS Exchange https://www.cdc.gov/dhdsp/maps/gisx/mapgallery/LA-rhc-ndi.html