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Table 2 The 28 variables related to regional characteristics

From: The distribution structure of medical and care resources based on regional characteristics throughout Japan in 2020

Category

Variable

Calculation method

Source

Population

Proportion of population aged under 15 years

Population aged under 15 years / population

[25]

Proportion of population aged 65 years and over

Population aged 65 years and over / population

Proportion of population change

Population change over 5 years / population 5 years ago

Population density

Population / land area (km2)

Proportion of population in densely inhabited districts

Population in densely inhabited districts†1 / population

Proportion of daytime to nighttime population

Daytime population / 100 nighttime population

Proportion of internal migrants from other municipalities

Number of internal migrants from other municipalities / population

[27]

Household

Persons per household

Population / number of households

[25]

Proportion of single-person households (excluding households aged 65 years and over)

Number of single-person households (excluding households aged 65 years and over) / number of households

Proportion of single-person households aged 65 years and over

Number of single-person households aged 65 years and over / number of households

Proportion of nuclear households

Number of nuclear households / number of households

Proportion of double-income households

Number of double-income households / number of households

Proportion of households living in a detached house

Number of households living in a detached house / number of households

Proportion of households living in government-owned rental housing

Number of households living in a government-owned (e.g., government management, urban renaissance agency, government corporation) rental housing / number of households

Industry & Work

Proportion of workers in primary industry

Number of workers in primary industry / population

[25]

Proportion of workers in secondary industry

Number of workers in secondary industry / population

Proportion of workers in tertiary industry

Number of workers in tertiary industry / population

Proportion of working population

Number of working population / population

Proportion of commuters using rail

Number of commuters using rail / population

Proportion of commuters using their own vehicle

Number of commuters using their own vehicle / population

Annual retail merchandise sales per capita

Annual retail merchandise sales†2 (JPY) / population

[28]

Municipal residence tax per capita

Municipal residence tax†3 (JPY) / population

[29]

Land utilization

Proportion of densely inhabited district areas

Densely inhabited district areas / total area

[27]

Proportion of land area used for building

Land area used for building†4 / total area

[30]

Proportion of forest area

Forest area†5 / total area

Proportion of land area used for rice paddies and agriculture

Land area used for rice paddies and agriculture†6 / total area

Proportion of depopulated area

Depopulated area†7, †8 / total area

[31]

Number of pre-merger municipalities

Number of previous municipalities that merged with municipalities†9 in the 2000 transition

[25]

  1. †1The “densely inhabited districts” are areas designated by the “population Census” [25], where adjacent basic unit areas have a population density of 4000 persons or more /km2, and the population of these adjacent areas is 5000 persons or more
  2. †2The “annual retail merchandise sales” data were obtained from the “Economic Census” data for 2016 [28] because data for 2020 were not available. To match the age of the population, the denominator used was the “Population Census” data for 2015 [25]
  3. †3The “municipal residence tax” is a Japanese tax levied on individuals based on their income in the previous year, which is paid to the municipality in which they reside
  4. †4The “land area used for building” was estimated from the tertiary land use mesh data using GIS. Data for 2020 were not available, so data for 2016 were used
  5. †5The “forest area” was estimated from the tertiary land use mesh data using GIS. Data for 2020 were not available, so data for 2016 were used
  6. †6The “land area used for rice paddies and agriculture” was estimated from the tertiary land use mesh data using GIS. Data for 2020 were not available, so data for 2016 were used
  7. †7The “depopulated area” is defined in Japanese law, and is defined as a depopulated area or a partially depopulated area, based on the region’s rate of population decline and financial strength
  8. †8The “depopulated area” data for 2020 were not available, so data for 2022 were used. The denominator used was the “Population Census” data for 2020 [25]
  9. †9The “number of previous municipalities that merged with municipalities” was independently calculated by checking the “Population Census” data for 2020 [25]
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BMC Health Services Research

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