Spatial justice and health (in)equity

The case of vector-borne diseases

Bibliographic Data

ID17832426
AuthorsAnoop C Choolayil (0000-0003-2561-2970, Vector Control Research Centre, corresponding author), Panneer Devaraju (0000-0003-0638-9590, Vector Control Research Centre), Muhammed Jabir (0000-0002-4503-4867, Vector Control Research Centre), Srikanth Srirama (0000-0003-2229-3716, Vector Control Research Centre), B Santosh Kumar (Vector Control Research Centre), Vijayakumar Balakrishnan (0000-0002-3570-4732), Balakrishnan Vijayakumar (0000-0003-1369-0824, Vector Control Research Centre), Srividya Vissvesaran (Department of Health & Family Welfare)
Year2026
Volume13
Issue1
Publication date2026-01-29
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueHumanities and Social Sciences Communications (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2662-9992 • E-ISSN: 2662-9992
PublisherPalgrave Macmillan (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1057/s41599-025-06464-6
OpenAlexW7126026367
LanguageEN
References cited19

From a spatial justice perspective, this article argues that the spatial plane is ‘constructed’ and that socio-spatial configurations can create and intensify health inequities for vulnerable sections. Employing a mixed methods design, the study inquired about the impact of socio- spatial elements on Vector-Borne Diseases (VBDs) in Puducherry, India. The quantitative phase involved geospatial mapping and household surveys of 650 random individuals from Puducherry who had recovered from dengue, chikungunya or scrub typhus over one year, followed by qualitative in-depth interviews of 30 individuals selected purposively from the first phase participants. The findings show how people are ‘placed’ in spatial planes that are constantly being ‘constructed’ by social forces, leading to an inevitable ‘entanglement’ with vectors. While certain sections possess the resources to ‘modify’ or ‘nullify’ these disadvantages, the disadvantaged continue to live in this entanglement. The complex interaction of geographical and social components in the case of VBDs necessitates debates on health equity from a spatial justice perspective. In fact, it can be argued that spatial justice serves as the foundation for health equity, on which other interventions can be built in communities endemic to VBDs

Disadvantaged · Economic Justice · Geospatial analysis · Psychological intervention · Qualitative research · Safeguarding · Social determinants of health · Social justice · Mosquito-borne diseases and control · Yersinia bacterium, plague, ectoparasites research · Zoonotic diseases and public health

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