A Spatio-Temporal Analysis of the Health Situation in Poland Based on Functional Discriminant Coordinates.

Mirosław Krzyśko,Waldemar Wołyńki,Marcin Szymkowiak,Andrzej Wojtyła

doi:10.3390/ijerph18031109

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate if the provinces of Poland are homogeneous in terms of the observed spatio-temporal data characterizing the health situation of their inhabitants. The health situation is understood as a set of selected factors influencing inhabitants’ health and the healthcare system in their area of residence. So far, studies concerning the health situation of selected territorial units have been based on data relating to a specific year rather than longer periods. The task of assessing province homogeneity was carried out in two stages. In stage one, the original spatio-temporal data space (space of multivariate time series) was transformed into a functional discriminant coordinates space. The resulting functional discriminant coordinates are synthetic measures of the health situation of inhabitants of particular provinces. These measures contain complete information regarding 8 diagnostic variables examined over a period of 6 years. In the second stage, the Ward method, commonly used in cluster analysis, was applied in order to identify groups of homogeneous provinces in the space of functional discriminant coordinates. Sixteen provinces were divided into four clusters. The homogeneity of the clusters was confirmed by the multivariate functional coefficient of variation.

Highlights

Health is universally regarded as one of the most highly appreciated values
A good health situation is instrumental in achieving good labor market outcomes
The main aim of this article is to determine whether Polish provinces are homogeneous in terms of spatio-temporal data characterizing their health situation

Summary

Introduction

Health is universally regarded as one of the most highly appreciated values. Good health is the main factor contributing to people’s well-being, which enhances their opportunities to participate in social life and to benefit from economic and employment growth. Better health is consistently associated with greater life satisfaction (Ngamaba et al [1]). A good health situation is instrumental in achieving good labor market outcomes. By reducing the individual’s capacity to work long hours, a deteriorated health status decreases their chance of getting employed and being productive at work and has a strong impact on the labor market situation (James et al [2], OECD [3]). For the purpose of this study, the term “health situation” is understood as inhabitants’

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