Assessing the need to establish new hospitals

During recent decades, the underdeveloped and the developing countries have witnessed modern or large hospitals, as well as other health facilities, being largely centered in capitals or metropolitan areas, leaving the remaining areas with less-accessible medical services. Many organizations provide in-patient services within the same neighbourhood, which leads to duplication and overlapping, ultimately resulting in wastage of capital resources. And, once built, hospitals are extremely difficult to close. In his paper the author assesses both the need to establish new hospitals and discusses the criteria to be met and investigations and studies to be carried out prior to their construction.