Evaluation of Inner-City Residential Neighborhood’s Capacity to Respond to Health-Related Shocks in Ondo State, Nigeria

Abstract

Olubi Abiodun Rufus, Ayoola Hezekiah Adedayo and Fadamiro Joseph Akinlabi

Inner-city residential neighbourhoods in developing countries are crucial urban systems that influence the social and spatial dynamics of health outcomes. Their exposure and ability to react to health-related challenges are influenced by their historical, physical, and socio-environmental characteristics. This study employs a mixed-methods approach to investigate the ability of inner-city neighbourhoods in selected cities in Ondo State, Nigeria, to respond to health emergencies. Data was gathered through questionnaires administered to randomly selected 440 consenting respondents and in-depth interviews with 20 family heads and members of neighbourhoods’ associations. Descriptive analysis reveals that malaria is the most prevalent health-related challenge (mean = 4.16), while tuberculosis is the least reported (mean = 1.12) across the selected neighbourhoods. Mann-Whitney U test reveals significant spatial variations in the distribution and incidence of health-related challenges across the selected inner-city residential neighbourhoods. This reflects underlying socio-spatial disparities in the neighbourhoods. Furthermore, ordinal logistic regression analysis shows that the effects of green space characteristics on health outcomes are context-dependent, impacted by their quality, accessibility, safety, and level of organization. Results further indicate that inadequate infrastructure, unfavourable environmental conditions, and limited access to healthcare hinder the neighborhood-level response capacity during health emergencies. These increase the neighbourhoods' vulnerability to recurrent health-related challenges. This study suggests, among other things, the need for urban design strategies that prioritize safe, functional, and well-maintained neighbourhoods’ structure, infrastructure, and environmental management.

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