Earth Observation Guided Telemedicine Planning to Boost Healthcare Access in Bhutan
The GDA AID Public Health activity worked with the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Bhutan’s Ministry of Health and Diginove to use Earth Observation (EO) data to support telemedicine planning.
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Description
Bhutan faces significant healthcare accessibility challenges due to its mountainous terrain, dispersed rural population, and limited transportation infrastructure. Although the country has more than 240 healthcare facilities, many communities in remote areas still experience difficulty reaching medical services, especially specialised hospital care.
To address these challenges, the European Space Agency (ESA), through the Global Development Assistance (GDA) Public Health activity, partnered with the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Bhutan’s Ministry of Health, and Diginove to develop an Earth Observation (EO) based service for telemedicine planning. The project combines satellite imagery, national datasets, and geospatial modelling to map population distribution, healthcare facilities, and realistic travel times across the country.
The EO-based analysis consisted of three main parts. Satellite imagery and census data to map the distribution of people across Bhutan, capturing both urban centers and remote rural communities. Travel times to healthcare facilities were modelled using terrain, road networks and other geographic factors to represent realistic accessibility. Lastly, access to primary healthcare facilities and hospitals, with a particular interest on regional disparities in access to specialised care.
The analysis produced several key findings: Bhutan’s primary healthcare network generally provides good access to basic services, but access to hospital and specialist care is uneven, with remote mountainous areas facing much longer travel times and clear geographic disparities. As a result, communities such as Lunana, Lauri, Laya, Serthig, and Tsamang were identified as priority areas for telemedicine deployment due to limited healthcare accessibility.
You can read more about this Case Study here: EO-guided telemedicine planning to strengthen healthcare accessibility in Bhutan
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