Which Patients Have Poor Access to Hospitals in San Francisco?
The OD Cost Matrix solver is a network analysis tool that calculates the fastest or least-cost travel paths between multiple origin points (ex: patients) and multiple destination points (ex: hospitals). Instead of measuring straight-line distance, it uses the real road network to compute ✅ Driving time ✅ Travel distance ✅ Route accessibility.
When a medical emergency happens, every minute matters. For some residents of San Francisco, reaching a hospital quickly isn't guaranteed — and delayed access can put lives at risk. My goal here is to identify which patients face the longest travel times to essential healthcare so interventions can be better planned.
Using ArcGIS Pro, I mapped the location of patients alongside hospitals in the region. But instead of just measuring straight-line distance, I used a more realistic approach: how long does it take to actually drive there using the real road network?
I applied the Origin-Destination Cost Matrix solver, a tool from Esri's Network Analyst extension, to calculate the fastest driving time between every patient and every available hospital. Then, I refined the results to focus only on those who can reach a hospital within 10 minutes or less — a critical benchmark in emergency medical response.
After the analysis, a worrying insight emerged: ➡️ Two patients have no hospital accessible within a 10-minute drive.
These people represent the most vulnerable cases. By mapping and flagging them, the city and healthcare coordinators can: • better allocate ambulances and emergency teams • improve pre-hospital care strategies • plan future healthcare infrastructure more equitably
In this scenario, data becomes a lifeline — turning complex road networks and medical records into clear guidance that can improve public health and potentially save lives.
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