2016 UAA Annual Conference

With a history of migration deeply rooted in its foundation, San Francisco has been at the forefront of implementing culturally inclusive policies. In addition to federal and state legislation, San Francisco voters have passed numerous local policies aimed at improving the healthcare safety net for immigrant and refugee populations, including its Sanctuary City status and Municipal ID program. 45% of the city’s population does not speak English at home, 13% live in linguistically isolated households, and 36% are immigrants. The city’s diverse demography and inclusive policies make for a unique case study, particularly in its measurable access to healthcare. Availability of resources does not equate to accessibility to resources, so this research aims to use ArcGIS to evaluate the accessibility of healthcare for San Franciscan immigrant and refugee populations. Methods: Using data from 2010 Census and the American Community Survey, this research measures accessibility geospatially. Geoprocessing tools include hot spot analysis, cluster analysis, and network analysis. Key Findings: San Franciscan ethnic and language communities occur in clusters. Medi-Cal providers and Federally Qualified Health Centers offering services in languages other than English, forming the healthcare safety net for immigrant and refugee populations, are lacking in their accessibility to these clusters. Geospatial analysis of linguistically isolated households and Limited English Proficiency persons enhances potential strategies for improving healthcare accessibility.