Healthcare Facility Location Selection: A Bibliometric Analysis and Scoping Review

Selecting suitable locations for healthcare facilities hinges on various selection criteria that requires multidimensional or multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) methods. This study aims to present a scoping review and bibliometric analysis by exploring methods employed for the healthcare facility location selection problem. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) is used as a reference framework. Articles of interest were retrieved by searching electronic databases, including Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science, and Science Direct, up to early 2022. A final database was compiled based on inclusion and exclusion criteria, after which a bibliometric analysis was executed to answer specific research questions. The full text of the papers was studied to identify which mathematical, machine learning (ML), or MCDM methods were employed and which MCDM environments were used. The results concluded that Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) combined with Geographical Information System (GIS) are the most prolific method when selecting a location for healthcare facilities, fuzzy triangular numbers are the most employed, and fuzzy and grey MCDM environments are preferred as they take uncertainty into account.