2011 to 2021 rehabilitation professionals distribution from system of China Disabled Persons' Federation using geographical gravity model / 中国康复理论与实践

ABSTRACT

ObjectiveTo investigate the distribution and trend of rehabilitation personnel of China Disabled Persons' Federation (CDPF) system and the people with disabilities (PWDs) using geographical gravity model. MethodsBased on ArcGIS and statistical data, the distribution of geographical center of gravity of the rehabilitation personnel of the CDPF system from 2011 to 2021 was analyzed. According to the economic development, the areas were divided into three regions, and the eastern region included eleven provincial units, the central region includes eight provincial units, and the western region included twelve provincial units. ResultsCompared with 2011, rehabilitation staffs per thousand PWDs increased at 107.5% in 2021, 81.1%, 114.2% and 174.1% for the eastern, central, and western regions, respectively; professional staffs increased at 190.5%, 148.8%, 284.6% and 280.6% for the eastern, central, and western regions, respectively; managerial staff increased at 80.0%, 46.8%, 554.3% and 128.1% for the eastern, central, and western regions, respectively. Compared with 2011, the geographical center of gravity of the rehabilitation personnel moved about 330.9 km in 2021, while the geographical center of gravity of the PWDs moved about 169.64 km. ConclusionThe rehabilitation personnel in the CDPF system is the most in the eastern region and least in the western region. The tracks of the geographical center of gravity of the three kind of rehabilitation personnel in the CDPF system are relatively consistent. The rehabilitation personnel in the eastern region are more concentrated than those in the western region, and the density of the PWDs is more westward than that of the rehabilitation personnel, and coordination is not a perfect match yet. It is necessary to strengthen the rehabilitation personnel allocation in the western region, to balance distribution of human resources for rehabilitation of PWDs among regions.