Geospatial distribution and bypassing health facilities among National Health Insurance Scheme enrollees: implications for universal health coverage in Nigeria

BACKGROUND: This study was carried out to enable an assessment of geospatial distribution and access to healthcare facilities under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) of Nigeria. The findings will be useful for efficient planning and equitable distribution of healthcare resources. METHODS: Data, including the distribution of selected health facilities, were collected in Ibadan, Nigeria. The location of all facilities was recorded using Global Positioning System and was subsequently mapped using ArcGIS software to produce spider-web diagrams displaying the spatial distribution of all health facilities. RESULTS: The result of clustering analysis of health facilities shows that there is a statistically significant hotspot of health facility at 99% confidence located around the urban areas of Ibadan. The significant hotspot result is dominated by a feature with a high value and is surrounded by other features also with high values. Away from the urban built-up area of Ibadan, health facility clustering is not statistically significant. There was also a high level (94%) of bypassing of NHIS-accredited facilities among the enrollees. CONCLUSIONS: Lopsided distribution of health facilities in the study area should be corrected as this may result in inequity of access to available health services.