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Challenges and responses to population health and urbanization in the 21st century

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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 February 2017) | Viewed by 75661

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Prof. Dr. Mark Rosenberg

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Guest Editor

Department of Geography & Planning, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada
Interests: health geography; population aging; planning and policy making
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Wuyi Wang

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Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China
Interests: health and medical geography; urban and rural health; longevity and environment

Prof. Thomas Krafft

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CAPHRI School of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Maastricht, Netherlands
Interests: public health surveillance; urban (environmental) health; global health
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Prof. Linsheng Yang

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Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China
Interests: health and medical geography; environmental change and health

Dr. Yang Cheng

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Guest Editor

School of Geography, Beijing Normal University, China
Interests: population aging; accessibility to health care services; health living environment
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Urbanization has significant impacts on people’s quality of life in the 21st century. The rapid process of urbanization raises the question of how individuals and the public, not-for-profit and private sectors in urban environments can make services available and accessible, and meet the demands of a growing vulnerable population, especially in developing countires and megacities. There is a need to understand how regional differences in urbanization and population health, their challenges and health impacts, and people’s accessibility and utilization of public services, will support planning and policy making for sustainable development in our future. This multi-disciplinary Special Issue calls for papers addressing these issues, and others linked to public health, population aging and urbanization in geography, urban planning, policy studies, etc. It is supported by the International Geographical Union (IGU) Commission on Health and the Environment (CHE) for the “Pre-conference on Shaping Geographies of Health, Health Care and Environment” and sessions on environment and health in the 33^rd International Geographical Congress (IGC) of IGU.

Sincerely yours,

Prof. Mark Rosenberg
Prof. Wuyi Wang
Prof. Thomas Krafft
Prof. Linsheng Yang
Dr. Yang Cheng
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

population health
urbanization
public services
planning
policy making

Published Papers (11 papers)

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235 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Analyzing Risk Factors for Fatality in Urban Traffic Crashes: A Case Study of Wuhan, China

by Zhensheng Wang, Yang Yue, Qingquan Li, Ke Nie, Wei Tu and Shi Liang

Sustainability 2017, 9(6), 897; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9060897 - 26 May 2017

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 4564

Abstract

How to maintain public transit safety and sustainability has become a major concern for the department of Road Traffic Administration. This study aims to analyze the risk factors that contribute to fatality in road traffic crashes using a 5-year police-reported dataset from the Wuhan Traffic Management Bureau. Four types of variables, including driving experience, environmental factor, roadway factor and crash characteristic, were examined in this research by a case-control study. To obtain a comprehensive understanding of crash fatality, this study explored a detailed set of injury-severity risk factors such as impact direction, light and weather conditions, crash characteristic, driving experience and high-risk driving behavior. Based on the results of statistical analyses, fatality risk of crash-involved individuals was significantly associated with driving experience, season, light condition, road type, crash type, impact direction, and high-risk driving behavior. This study succeeded in identifying the risk factors for fatality of crash-involved individuals using a police-reported dataset, which could provide reliable information for implementing remedial measures and improving sustainability in urban road network. A more detailed list of explanatory variables could enhance the accountability of the analysis. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges and responses to population health and urbanization in the 21st century)

252 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Mobile Healthcare Applications and Gamification for Sustained Health Maintenance

by Changjun Lee, Kyoungsun Lee and Daeho Lee

Sustainability 2017, 9(5), 772; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9050772 - 08 May 2017

Cited by 45 | Viewed by 9623

Abstract

This paper examines how gamification affects user intention to use mobile healthcare applications (mHealth) and how the effect of gamification works differently according to health status, age, and gender. We use data from a mobile survey conducted by a Korean representative survey agency. We estimate the effect of gamification on user intention to use mobile healthcare applications based on a structural equation model and examine the moderating effects of self-reported health status, age, and gender. We find that gamification is effective in increasing user intention to use mHealth, especially in the healthy and younger groups. These findings suggest that mHealth, with the gamification factor, would encourage healthy (but lack exercise) people as well as unhealthy people to maintain their health status, and thus the mHealth developers need to consider the gamification factor when they develop mHealth services for healthy people. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges and responses to population health and urbanization in the 21st century)

2552 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Towards Sustainable Public Health Surveillance in India: Using Routinely Collected Electronic Emergency Medical Service Data for Early Warning of Infectious Diseases

by Eva Pilot, Ramana Roa, Biranchi Jena, Boris Kauhl, Thomas Krafft and GVS Murthy

Sustainability 2017, 9(4), 604; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9040604 - 13 Apr 2017

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 8305

Abstract

Infectious disease surveillance, timely detection and early warning of outbreaks present a complex challenge to health authorities in India. Approaches based on the use of unexplored data sources, like emergency medical services (EMS) data, can contribute to the further advancement of public health surveillance capacities in India and support and strengthen the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) strategy. This research followed a mixed method approach including a series of semi-structured interviews and fever data analysis of the EMS operating dispatch system in Andra Pradesh, India. In this paper, we explore whether routinely collected EMS health data can improve sustainable infectious disease surveillance and early warning capacity. The result highlights the need for improved surveillance systems for early warning of infectious diseases in India. The data availability at the EMS dispatch centre includes patient data and spatial information and can be used for near real-time analysis. Routine data relevant for health surveillance can be extracted to provide timely health information that supplements and enhances more traditional surveillance mechanisms and thus provides a cost-efficient, near real-time early warning system for the operating states. The designed intervention is sustainable and can improve infectious disease surveillance to potentially help the government officials to appropriately prioritize timely interventions to prevent infectious disease spread. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges and responses to population health and urbanization in the 21st century)

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2469 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Impact of Green Open Space on Community Attachment—A Case Study of Three Communities in Beijing

by Yuemei Zhu, Junxiang Ding, Qing Zhu, Yang Cheng, Qiuchen Ma and Xuze Ji

Sustainability 2017, 9(4), 560; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9040560 - 07 Apr 2017

Cited by 24 | Viewed by 7085

Abstract

With the development of urbanization in China, the quality of urban life and community attachment have attracted increasing attention of the governments and society. Existing research on community attachment has mainly examined how individual characteristics affect community attachment, such as their length of residence and socioeconomic status. However, some scholars have become interested in exploring the effects of green open space on community attachment. This research examined whether the distribution of green open space in communities had significant effects on community attachment, and both the impact and path were also investigated. Through a questionnaire survey, relevant data in three communities of Beijing were collected. The impact of green open space layout on community attachment was evaluated by using hierarchical regression, and the impact path was examined by using a structural equation model. The results showed that green open space in a community had significant effects on the community attachment, with centralized green open space layout having a greater effect than that of dispersed green open space. Moreover, the more complex the shape of green open space is, the greater the impact is. The degree of satisfaction with the green open space had direct effects on the community attachment. The accessibility and perceived area of green open space could indirectly have an impact on the community attachment by affecting the degree of satisfaction with the green open space. Nevertheless, residents’ perceived importance of green open space could affect the community attachment directly and indirectly, as it affects the degree of satisfaction. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges and responses to population health and urbanization in the 21st century)

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2073 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Spatiotemporal Patterns of Ozone and Cardiovascular and Respiratory Disease Mortalities Due to Ozone in Shenzhen

by Li Wang, Yu Bai, Fengying Zhang, Wuyi Wang, Xiaojian Liu and Thomas Krafft

Sustainability 2017, 9(4), 559; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9040559 - 07 Apr 2017

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 4075

Abstract

In order to explore the temporal-spatial patterns and possible health effects of ozone in Shenzhen, daily concentrations of ozone and the daily mortality caused by cardiovascular and respiratory diseases were collected. Using Geographic Information System (GIS) and SPSS, the spatial and temporal patterns of ozone in Shenzhen were illustrated. Using a generalized additive model (GAM), the associations between ozone and cardiovascular and respiratory diseases causing mortality were analyzed, adjusted for meteorological factors and other major air pollutants including fine particulate matter (PM_2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and carbon monoxide (CO), and stratified by lag, age, and gender. The results showed that, during 2013, ozone was the second main air pollutant in Shenzhen apart from PM_2.5, with average daily concentrations of 95.9 µg/m³ and 76.8 µg/m³ for the ozone 1-h mean and the daily ozone 8-h maximum concentration, respectively. The daily level of ozone had a higher concentration from September to October, and relatively low concentration from May to June. Obviously, a higher concentration was found in central parts of Shenzhen with the largest population, indicating higher risks. The excess risk (ER) percentage of the cardio-respiratory mortality rate showed a clearly accumulative effect at L03, with the highest ER percentage of 1.08 (0.88–1.27) per 10 µg/m³ increase in the ozone 8-h maximum concentration for all the population. Males were found to be more sensitive to ozone compared with females, and the elderly were more susceptible to ozone exposure than younger people. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges and responses to population health and urbanization in the 21st century)

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2816 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Estimates of Economic Loss of Materials Caused by Acid Deposition in China

by Yinjun Zhang, Qian Li, Fengying Zhang and Gaodi Xie

Sustainability 2017, 9(4), 488; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9040488 - 24 Mar 2017

Cited by 20 | Viewed by 8217

Abstract

China is facing severe acid deposition. Acid deposition can cause economic loss, corrosion, and damage to materials, and the reduction of material life span. In this study, the administrative areas (including municipalities, prefecture-level cities, regions, autonomous prefectures, and leagues—hereinafter referred to the cities) at and above the prefecture level were selected as research areas. Monitoring results of acid precipitation and ambient air sulfur dioxide (SO₂) from the China National Environmental Monitoring Network were used, research findings available domestically and abroad were summarized, and a set of material exposure inventory per capita was established, based on urban and rural areas in Eastern, Central, and Western China regions. Losses of construction materials caused by acid deposition in the cities were assessed by using the said materials’ acid rain exposure response functions available. The results showed that, material loss caused by acid deposition in China was 32.165 billion yuan (RMB, similarly hereinafter) in 2013, accounting for 0.057% of GDP (Gross Domestic Product) and 3.4% of the total investment for environmental pollution governance this year. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges and responses to population health and urbanization in the 21st century)

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526 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Urbanization on Rural Drinking Water Quality in Beijing, China

by Lan Zhang, Shenghua Gao, Binggan Wei, Yonghua Li, Hairong Li, Li Wang and Bixiong Ye

Sustainability 2017, 9(4), 461; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9040461 - 24 Mar 2017

Cited by 45 | Viewed by 6871

Abstract

Urbanization is an inevitable trend in historical development, but eco-environmental problems, including drinking water safety, have gradually become more and more outstanding during the process of rural urbanization. Ten districts in rural areas of Beijing, China were selected to study the effects of urbanization on drinking water quality. The relation between the urbanization index and drinking water quality indicators were explored. The influence of the urbanization process on drinking water quality showed that housing construction, population urbanization, energy consumption, and industrialization during urban development were closely related to drinking water quality. The paired t-test showed the total electricity consumption, living electricity consumption, tertiary industry, and the GDP growth rate had boundary (p = 0.06) or significantly positive (p < 0.05) relations with the qualified rate of rural drinking water. The grey correlation analysis showed that the growth rates of the value-added of housing construction areas were the most important factor affecting comprehensive water quality of Beijing rural areas, followed by the growth rates of the value-added by secondary industry and total electricity consumption, and then the growth rates of the value-added by the tertiary industry and GDP. Urbanization had a significant impact on individual water quality indicators. The results of this study provided some supports for drinking water security in the face of urbanization. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges and responses to population health and urbanization in the 21st century)

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505 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Disease Burden of Patients with Allergic Rhinitis from a Hospital Surveillance in Beijing

by Fengying Zhang, Chengjing Nie, Li Wang, Mark Rosenberg, Jin Xu, Thomas Krafft and Wuyi Wang

Sustainability 2017, 9(3), 427; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9030427 - 14 Mar 2017

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4308

Abstract

Background: The aims of this study are to estimate the disease burden of allergic rhinitis (AR) patients and examine various underlying issues related to the symptoms and services of adult AR patients. Methods: Beijing hospital was picked as the surveillance area, and self-report questionnaires from the AR patients and data from medical examinations by specialists of otolaryngology were collected. The burden of patients with AR was evaluated by the combined results from patient-questionnaires and specialist examination reports. Results: AR imposed a substantial burden on patients regarding everyday life limitations and work performance; AR affected patients’ noses, ears, throats, and eyes in various ways. The basic daily average medicine cost was 10 RMB for each patient, and the cost for an outpatient in the hospital was 10 RMB for a basic nasal examination and more than 200 RMB if the patient needed further physical examinations. Conclusions: AR imposed burdens on everyday activities and work performance; the patients needed to wait a long time before being diagnosed, and the costs of diagnosis and treatment imposed economic burden on patients. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges and responses to population health and urbanization in the 21st century)

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5399 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Public Open Space Development for Elderly People by Using the DANP-V Model to Establish Continuous Improvement Strategies towards a Sustainable and Healthy Aging Society

by Bo-Wei Zhu, Jia-Rui Zhang, Gwo-Hshiung Tzeng, Shan-Lin Huang and Lei Xiong

Sustainability 2017, 9(3), 420; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9030420 - 11 Mar 2017

Cited by 49 | Viewed by 9019

Abstract

With the global trend of population aging, how to integrate the health needs of elderly people into public open space (POS) development while taking into account public interest is a major challenge in the 21st century. Although the issues of elderly people’s health and their POS needs are receiving increasing attention, research on continuous improvement strategies for POS for healthy aging societies is still limited. Hence, this study explored continuous improvement strategies thoroughly and systematically by using the DANP-V model. The findings revealed cognitive differences between expert and elderly groups. Moreover, water features, waste management, and co-maintenance spaces were the three criteria with the largest gap value. POS improvement has previously been implemented based on a priority order ranked from the criterion with largest gap value to the criterion with the smallest one. However, an alternative approach based on the cause–effect relationship is proposed in this paper. The study findings have both theoretical and practical implications for POS planners and designers. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges and responses to population health and urbanization in the 21st century)

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897 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

An Application of the Short-Term Forecasting with Limited Data in the Healthcare Traveling Industry

by Hoang-Sa Dang, Ying-Fang Huang, Chia-Nan Wang and Thuy-Mai-Trinh Nguyen

Sustainability 2016, 8(10), 1037; https://doi.org/10.3390/su8101037 - 16 Oct 2016

Cited by 21 | Viewed by 4936

Abstract

In real practice, forecasting under the limited data has attracted more attention in business activities, especially in the healthcare traveling industry in its current stage. However, there are only a few research studies focusing on this issue. Thus, the purposes of this paper were to determine the forecasted performance of several current forecasting methods as well as to examine their applications. Taking advantage of the small data requirement for model construction, three models including the exponential smoothing model, the Grey model GM(1,1), and the modified Lotka-Volterra model (L.V.), were used to conduct forecasting analyses based on the data of foreign patients from 2001 to 2013 in six destinations. The results indicated that the L.V. model had higher prediction power than the other two models, and it obtained the best forecasting performance with an 89.7% precision rate. In conclusion, the L.V. model is the best model for estimating the market size of the healthcare traveling industry, followed by the GM(1,1) model. The contribution of this study is to offer a useful statistical tool for short-term planning, which can be applied to the healthcare traveling industry in particular, and for other business forecasting under the conditions of limited data in general. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges and responses to population health and urbanization in the 21st century)

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244 KiB

Open AccessPerspective

Sustopia or Cosmopolis? A Critical Reflection on the Sustainable City

by Carijn Beumer

Sustainability 2017, 9(5), 845; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9050845 - 18 May 2017

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 7694

Abstract

A broader perspective on the role of cities and their relation to their inhabitants and the planet is essential to effectively answer urgent sustainability questions that emerge in and beyond cities. This essay provides a critical reflection on the notion of the sustainable city. The central question discussed is: how can the ideal of a sustainable city be best conceptualised? Through exploring historic and contemporary theories on the urban-nature-people relationship and analysing some current sustainable city projects with the help of Cultural Theory, it is argued that creating a sustainable city paradoxically means parting with Sustopia. Sustopia often turns into Dystopia when a single perspective on constructing a sustainable city becomes dominant. In order to assist the process of meaningfully conceptualising the sustainable city, the notion of Cosmopolis is re-explored. This notion of a city embraces creativity, critical practice, adaptation, and it places urban development and planning in a context of multiple spatial and temporal scales. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges and responses to population health and urbanization in the 21st century)

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