Keywords |
| Regression model, quality, environment health, dwelling, slum area |
Introduction |
| Any city has a population peak and the target
in urban planning is to meet the needs of that
population. Development of city population
has gotten proportional order in developed
countries. But this case is not organized well
in the developing world because of irregular
emigration (1). |
| After the Second World War, rapid and
uncoordinated trend of urbanization has been
one of the most important social problems of
the developing countries. Such inefficient
urbanization process and consequently
creation and development of suburban living
places as a result of excessive inter
emigrations from village to city to form new
types of living (e.g. residing in huts, shanty
dweller, tins and etc.) which caused various socioeconomic and environmental problems
(2). Article 25 - part 1 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights defines health
right as it follows: |
| Everyone has the right to a standard of living
adequate for the health and well-being of
himself and of his family, including food,
clothing, housing and medical care and
necessary social services, and the right to
security in the event of unemployment,
sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or
other lack of livelihood in circumstances
beyond his control. |
| According to this case and review of
theoretical texts and surveys in the health care
field, emphasis of all researchers is on
“organic” hypothesis as a suitable and
sufficient approach in evaluation of
environment health quality in residential
places. A qualified living site is suggestion of
welfare feeling of living level and satisfactory
of settler’s life quality through physical- social
facilities (3). So, quality of environment
sanitary, result from resultant of quality of
components of a determined area. These
components include: nature, open space,
foundation and artificial environments that
each has its specifications and quality (4).
There are different approaches to study the
qualities of living environment each of which
originates from a specific scientific discipline
such as: anthropology, architecture, economy,
environmental design, geography, psychology,
sociology, and environment health
engineering (5). According to the studies in
the field of urban pathology to identify the
weakness of processes of growth and urban
development, it is widely agreed that the
health condition of living areas is a separate
product of this part (6). Hence, finding remedy
to utilize effective solutions for decreasing
harmful effects of development of such
environments has been one of the most important challenges to the urban managers
and city programmers worldwide (especially
in the developing countries) (7,8). The ability
to comprehensively evaluate such settlements
can help decision makers to come up with
quality improvement plans for the
environmental health of slum areas (9). But
not much is known about the effectiveness of
such plans, hence this study tries to tackle this
gap looking at the three slum areas of the city
of Sari, Iran, and measuring the environmental
health quality of those places. Moreover, their
environmental health quality has been
determined according to the priority of unfair
environmental component. |
Method |
| This study was carried out using Hierarchical
Multiple Regression Analysis (HMR) method.
This type of analysis is an analytical technique
for investigation and analysis of reciprocal
connection between one criterion having
dependent criteria and two or more
antecedents with independent criteria. Also,
The Multiple Regression Analysis was applied
for measuring the deviation of the independent
variable. Two special specifications of
Multiple Regression Analysis include
estimation of "regression weights" and
measuring the "goodness of fit model" for
analysis of quality. In this survey, the
independent variables were given a weightage.
So, their proportional share was estimated in
independent variable. The assigning if
weightage to each independent variable was
done according to its effect on the dependent
variable. These numerical values are called
"regression weights" or coefficients. After
standardizing these weights, coefficients and
determination of β coefficient and ranks of the
dependent variables were compared with each
other (10). The experimental model of the
measuring of the residential places quality
namely," value tree" has hierarchical structure that criteria, sub- criteria and effective criteria
in process of measuring of the quality of the
environmental health maintain different levels
of the model (11). Also, amount of
environment health quality which is proposed
at minimum standard level is evaluated in two
aspects of the environmental health quality of
residential units and the environmental health
quality. This model is described in four levels.
In identifying the criteria/sub-criteria of the
environmental health quality, different
methods such as review of the related
text/literature, primary identification of the
studied area and obtaining the viewpoints of
experts were used. Also, for arranging and
developing the value tree of the environmental
health, the "top to down" experimental
approach was used. In this model, Quality of
environmental health of residential places is
placed at the first level of the tree. The second
level is analyzed in two criteria of the
environmental health quality of residential
area and units. The third level is analyzed in
six sub criteria, namely health of buildings
and spaces, social cooperation and ties and
place dependency, accessibility, physicalsocial
facility, security, environment health
variables and criteria of environmental health
quality of the residential units analyzed in
three sub criteria, maintains cost, outdoor
facility and dwelling size and facility
analyzed. Finally, the forth level of the model
is divided into more sub- criteria of the third
level that determined through the direct
questionnaire method. Gathering of data at the
level of 660 families of the three areas of sari
(namely, Nowbonyad alley, Qaffari alley, and
Tork mahaleh) was done in census method.
For analysis of the data of residential places
quality, the one-sample T-test and for
comparing of the average score of the quality,
the one-sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov Test,
and for ranking of criteria and sub-criteria of
the quality of the settler's health, the multivariables
regression analysis method were
used. |
Findings |
| According to the quantity results of the
questionnaire and one- sample T- test ,
average of the quality of environmental health
of dwellings got 1<1.92<5 that there was a
significant relation among four levels of the
model with quality variable (p < 0.03) (Figure
1). |
| To compare the mean score of the three
places, the one-sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov
Test was used. Data distribution in mentioned
groups was normal (P<0.04). It was observed
that the quality in Tork mahaleh was lower
than the other two slum places. Therefore,
quality in second level (1<1.92<5) and third
level (1<2.25<5) evaluated weak (Table1). |
| For ranking of criteria and sub criteria’s of the
components of environmental health quality of
residential areas, the Hierarchical Multiple
Regression Analysis method was used. In this
method, to determine the quality of effective
variables (criteria and component of quality)
that influence the residential health criteria, "β
“quality" at the second level was β= 0.3 and
β= 0.247, respectively. Also, among sub
criteria’s of environmental health quality, in
mentioned places, the sub-criteria of
“accessibility” with β = 0.186 and among sub
criteria’s of environment quality of residential
area, “size and outdoor facilities of residential
unit” with β= 0.265 had minimal importance
(Table 2). |
Conclusion |
| As the study result indicated, the
environmental health quality of residential
places in the three studied region is about
weak range (1<2.03<5). Also in the second
level, the environmental heath quality of
residential units is lower (1<1.9<5) than the
health quality of the residential area’s environment (1<1.94<5). As for the subcriteria
belonging to the two criteria of
residential unit and residential area’s health
quality, the highest quality levels are observed
for access to the facilities (1<2.72<5) and
physical- social facilities (1<2.54<5); whereas
the lowest quality levels are observed for the
size and indoor facilities of residential units
(1<1.03<5) and security and safety
(1<1.71<5). Also the ranking of components
happening in different levels implies the
higher significance of residential unit's
environment health quality criterion (β=0.360)
in comparison with environmental health
quality of residential area (β=0.247). As for
the sub criteria related to these two criteria,
Size and outdoor facilities of residential unit
with β= 0.262 and Size and indoor facilities of
residential unit with β=0.224 are the highest
ones; whereas the security and safety
(β=0.154) and social ties and place
dependency with β= 0.158 are the least
significant ones. |
| So the size and indoor facilities of residential
units and maintenance cost including: repairs,
reconstruction, water, electricity & gas on
environmental health quality residential units
& also security & safety and social
cooperation & place dependency on
environmental health quality residential area
are the most important components requiring
serious intervention. The weak level of quality
in all criteria & sub- criteria is significant and
remarkable, therefore, the major actions to
improve and promote the quality is necessary.
As a result, planning to improve
environmental conditions in a stable and
holistic manner to increase health, security,
hope, faith, and human generosity in the
informal dwellings and to prevent the informal
extension of such residential areas in future is
of utmost importance; not to mention the
importance of preparation for constructing
suitable urban residences as well as providing
conditions to benefit from urban advantages in
line with an enriched urban culture to accommodate such dwellings along with their
multilateral participation in making decisions
& local actions. |
Acknowledgment |
| This study was supported
by Vice-Chancellor for research; Mazandaran
University of Medical Sciences and the
authors are deeply indebted to slum dwellers
in this city that helped us. |
Conflict of Interest |
| None to declare |
 |
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 |
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