ArticleFrontiers in public health2025
Efficiency divergence and convergence in China's hospital sector: empirical insights from Guangdong Province using a multi-method approach.
Article in Frontiers in public health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Distribution dynamics and spatial dependence in healthcare resource allocation efficiency: evidence of path dependence and club formation in China.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: Since the launch of China's new round of healthcare system reforms in 2009, improving service efficiency has become a critical focus for enhancing the equitable allocation of medical resources and overall healthcare quality. Guangdong Province, as one of China's most economically dynamic regions, faces significant challenges in addressing disparities in hospital service efficiency and optimizing resource utilization. Objective: This study aims to comprehensively analyze the differences, dynamic evolution, and influencing factors of service efficiency among healthcare institutions in Guangdong Province. The goal is to provide scientific evidence for narrowing efficiency gaps between hospitals, enhancing overall service quality, and informing policy development. Methods: A comprehensive evaluation system for hospital service efficiency in Guangdong Province was constructed. Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) was employed to measure efficiency levels. The Dagum Gini coefficient decomposition method was used to examine the sources of efficiency disparities among different hospital categories. Kernel density estimation was employed to investigate the dynamic distribution of service quality, while the Tobit regression model was used to identify key factors influencing healthcare service efficiency. Results: The findings indicate that significant differences in service efficiency existed among various categories of hospitals in Guangdong Province from 2018 to 2022. Specialty hospitals demonstrated the highest average overall efficiency, whereas general hospitals recorded the lowest efficiency and growth rates. The performance of healthcare institutions in terms of pure technical efficiency, scale efficiency, and overall efficiency showed fluctuations, but a general trend of recovery was observed. The Dagum Gini coefficient decomposition revealed a relatively high degree of internal efficiency inequality within general hospitals, peaking in 2021, reflecting heterogeneity in scale, management, and resource allocation. The Gini coefficient between specialty and general hospitals was also comparatively high. Kernel density estimation indicated a bimodal distribution in service efficiency, highlighting the heterogeneity of efficiency levels and an increase in hospital categories with lower service quality. The Tobit model analysis confirmed that a lower mortality rate among low-risk cases had a significant positive impact on service efficiency, while average appointment rate, the proportion of health technicians, and the proportion of senior health technicians had significant negative effects. Conclusion: It is recommended to deepen reforms of internal governance structures and enhance cross-level collaboration within healthcare institutions. Establishing efficiency-oriented mechanisms, optimizing human resource management, strengthening departmental collaboration, and leveraging information technology can effectively improve the service efficiency of healthcare institutions in Guangdong Province.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.