Xu Publishes in Journal of Transport Geography on Post-Disaster Healthcare Inaccessibility in Zambia
Posted: 2026-10-07 15:12:50 (CSDE Research)
CSDE Affiliate Dafeng Xu (Evans School of Public Policy and Governance) and co-author Yuxin Zhang recently published a research article in the Journal of Transport Geography titled, “Post-Disaster Healthcare Inaccessibility, Infrastructure Deficits, and Individual-Level Risk Prediction: Evidence from Zambia.” Using Demographic and Health Survey data spanning 2001–2024, the authors estimate the effects of Zambia’s 2009 flood on women’s healthcare access. Their difference-in-differences analysis shows that women in flood-affected provinces experienced sizable declines in healthcare accessibility, driven primarily by two barriers: lack of transportation and long distances to healthcare facilities. These effects were significant in both the short and long run, and while observed in both rural and urban areas, persisted longer in rural areas. The authors find that infrastructure deficits, rather than deteriorating household economic conditions, played the leading role in driving these persistent access declines. The study also demonstrates the policy relevance of individual-level risk prediction, showing that a machine learning model can accurately predict healthcare inaccessibility using a rich set of individual and household variables. The full article can be found here. Congratulations Dr. Xu!
Date: 10/07/2026