Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística

The IBGE has anticipated the release of the preliminary results on the  population flows to cities in search of health services, which is part of the 2018 survey of Areas of Influence of Cities (Regic). These data may guide the development of public health policies and logistics for Brazilian cities to face Covid-19.

The following points are some of the information from the survey:

• The REGIC 2018 survey questionnaire has two questions that investigate the displacement of people leaving their municipalities bound for others for the purpose of low, medium and high complexity health services.
• The result showed an average of trips of 72 km within the country for the purpose of receiving low and medium complexity health services.
• Manaus (AM) has more distant trips (on average, 418 km), while Goiânia (GO) attracts the largest number of cities, a total of 115.
• Only Santa Catarina recorded flows with an average of less than 40 km, the smallest in the country, with a slight highlight to Chapecó (SC).
• The search for high-complexity treatment averaged 155 km, with deep regional differences in terms of concentration in specialized centers.
• While the average displacement of the Southeast and South Regions was around 100 km, in which flows are visibly distributed between the capitals and smaller hubs present in the countryside, in the Northeast the attraction of capitals overlaps and goes beyond the health care of hubs in the countryside. The North records trips of 276 km and the Central-West, of 256 km.
• Roraima and Amazonas had the highest displacement averages for high-complexity health treatment (471 and 462 km, respectively), followed by Mato Grosso with 370 km.
• The lowest average occurred in the State of Rio de Janeiro, with 67 km, where the capital shares flows with the population arrangements of Campos de Goytacazes (RJ), Volta Redonda (RJ) and with the Municipality of Itaperuna (RJ), in addition to bordering cities in the State of minas Gerais (MG).
• Despite the concentration in the capitals, it is possible to observe hubs that exceed state limits. The main reference is the influence of Barretos (SP) in the treatment of cancer. There are 122 cities that have Barretos as their destination located in eight different states (including cities in Rondônia, Pará and all states in the Central-West Region).

See more results of the population flows to cities in search of health care, which is part of the 2018 Survey of Areas of Influence of Cities (Regic), by clicking here.

Directorate of Geosciences

April 7, 2020