Siting of Healthcare Care Facilities Based on the Purpose of Their Operation, Demographic Changes, Environmental Characteristics, and the Impact on Public Health  
[PERSON]  
A crucial factor promoting human health and enabling people to fully utilise the healthcare system is good access to healthcare, which is impacted by numerous factors, i.e., the scope of healthcare services; demand for healthcare; population health; demographic characteristics; socioeconomic status; and geographic impedance between the population and healthcare services [4]. However, the concept of healthcare accessibility is complicated, and difficult to define and measure. Access to healthcare is a multidimensional concept. Therefore, both spatial and non-spatial parameters, which are part of two categories of healthcare access: potential and realised access [5], must be taken into account [6]. Potential access refers to people having direct access to these services on the basis of existing conditions, but does not warrant their use. Realised access based on potential access focuses on the actual use of services. Both types of access are divided into spatial and non-spatial access, depending on how access is affected by spatial (e.g., sitting and distance or travel time) and non-spatial (e.g., socioeconomic status or cultural background) factors [7; 8; 9; 10; 11]. Differences in spatial access are due to the location, and the uneven distribution of the population and healthcare providers. The siting of healthcare facilities is a process, which must take into account several stakeholders: patients, who need access to facilities, physicians, who strive for attractive and easily accessible workplaces, taxpayers, who require good value for their contributions, and politicians, who aim to attain their goals [12]. When seeking suitable locations for the siting of healthcare facilities, large amounts of data on spatial and location aspects must be collected, aggregated and analysed to correctly assess crucial factors. Such analyses make use of combinations of location and multiple-criteria models. As part of information technology, a geographic information system (GIS) set up to store, obtain, modify, analyse and form data is frequently used in organisations responsible for healthcare management worldwide at regional and local levels. The use of the GIS systems may be crucial to the optimal siting of healthcare facilities and their spatial accessibility [1; 13]. In healthcare, incorrect siting seriously affects communities, as healthcare facilities that are difficult to access are connected with increased morbidity and mortality [2]. From this aspect, optimal siting in healthcare is more important than in other fields. As a result, decisions made in this relation are more significant and must be made systematically by taking into account the complete spatial context. On the assumption of good public health as a priority source of sustainable development in general, it is necessary to design public space to reduce stress and anxiety, increase user satisfaction, and promote health in urban space [14]. When siting healthcare facilities in the wider space, it is also crucial to be aware of the positive effects of a well-designed immediate outdoor space, which significantly affects the patient treatment process. The design of outdoor spaces must take into account various elements, which may contribute to a healing environment with positive effects on the patients' well-being and the results of their treatment, while enhancing the general effectiveness of hospitals. Despite the fact that hospital design has been affected mainly by economic factors in the past century, leading to potential restorative benefits of their immediate surroundings being neglected, the recently developed and integrated healthcare systems are more focused on the patients' needs in terms of treatment and services in view of their satisfaction [15].