Toward a Socio-Territorial Approach to Health: Health Equity in West Africa

Abstract

This study contributes to the literature about the effects of space and place on health by introducing a socio-territorial approach to urban health disparities in West Africa. It explores how urban spaces, specifically neighbourhoods, are shaped by social and economic relations and strategies of territorial control. We examine the potential influence of socio-territorial processes on vulnerability to disease, access to medical care, healthscapes, and illness experiences. Our research was conducted in Senegal and relied on a mixed methods design. We identified four neighbourhoods that represent the socio-spatial heterogeneity of the city of Saint-Louis and utilized the following methods: geographic and anthropological field research, household surveys, health knowledge and behaviour surveys, clinical exams, and illness interviews. Our results highlight the socio-territorial processes at work in each neighbourhood, clinical findings on three health measures (overweight, high blood pressure, and hyperglycaemia) and health experiences of individuals with hypertension or type II diabetes. We found significant differences in the prevalence of the three health measures in the study sites, while experiences managing hypertension and diabetes were similar. We conclude that a socio-territorial approach offers insight into the complex constellation of forces that produce health disparities in urban settings.

Development of a spatial sampling protocol using GIS to measure health disparities in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, a medium-sized African city

“…It was applied in Saint-Louis of Senegal as part of the SANTINELLES project in which this study fitted [35]. …”

“…However, our approach shows that alternatives to sample an urban population in a low-income country exist. It was applied in Saint-Louis of Senegal as part of the SANTINELLES project in which this study fitted [ 35 ].…”

Itinerarios terapéuticos transfronterizos: Hacia el estudio del pluralismo médico y la movilidad humana transfronteriza

“…Ahora bien, ¿cuántos han pensado dicha relación desde el pluralismo médico? En lo que sigue, analizaremos cuatro aproximaciones paradigmáticas en la reflexión sobre espacio y pluralismo médico: la de los therapeutic landscape, la de los healthscape, la actual aproximación socioterritorial al estudio de la salud (Vialard, Squiban, Fournet, Salem y Foley, 2017), más los planteamientos de Baud (2005). Mientras los tres primeros han abordado la salud y el pluralismo médico desde una consideración por el espacio, el último lo elegimos como buen ejemplo del tratamiento que un estudioso del pluralismo médico hace de la dimensión espacial.…”

“…El estudio de las relaciones entre salud y espacio es reciente y las primeras aproximaciones fueron estáticas (Vialard et al, 2017) hasta el surgimiento de la aproximación del concepto de paisajes terapéuticos de Gesler (1992). Partiendo de la asunción de que todo proceso terapéutico siempre se despliega en el espacio, Gesler se propuso analizar dicha relación superando una concepción puramente fisicalista hacia una que integra los ambientes físicos y construidos, tanto como las acciones, intenciones, las constricciones y las estructuras sociales.…”

Correction: Vialard, L., et al. Toward a Socio-Territorial Approach to Health: Health Equity in West Africa. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2017, 14, 106

“…In the original version of our article [ 1 ], insufficient acknowledgement was given to the organizers of the medical survey. We apologize for this mistake.…”