| Ensuring adequate access to primary healthcare has remained a major goal of health legislation and government initiatives in past years. Primary care physicians provide the basic healthcare needs for populations, and have become a key indicator of general health status within the United States. However, efforts to operationalize and define access have varied. In recent years, access has been conceptualized into two components, spatial and non-spatial access. The aim of this study is to address the spatial components within a GIS environment. In order to capture the interaction between physicians and populations, various access measures have been utilized, including the two-step floating catchment area (2SFCA). However despite its advantages, significant limitations have been highlighted within rural areas. To account for this, a cap function was introduced to the 2SFCA method to limit catchment sizes within urban areas. Results using dynamic catchment sizes in Northern and Southern Illinois have revealed more detailed spatial access values overall and greater variability of catchment sizes within rural and urban environments. |
