Spatial Concentration of Health Industry under COVID-19

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the industry immensely and, in some cases, irreversibly. This research pioneers in studying how the pandemic have influenced the survival and spatial distribution of the health-related manufacturing industry (HRMI) in Taiwan. Eight categories of HRMI are examined, with their change in survival performances and spatial concentration between 2018 and 2020. Average Nearest Neighbour and Local Indicators of Spatial Association are conducted, to visualise the distribution of industrial clusters. We found the pandemic did not shock the HRMI in Taiwan, but actually induced its growth and spatial concentration to a certain extent. Additionally, due to it being a knowledge-intensive industry, the HRMI mainly concentrate in metropolitan areas with which universities and science parks may have largely supported. However, the spatial concentration and cluster scope growth do not necessarily accompany the improvement of spatial survival, which may be resulted from the different life cycle stages an industry category is in. This research fills in the gap of medical studies with literatures and data from the field of spatial studies. It provides interdisciplinary insights under the condition of pandemic.