TITLE:
Medications in Mexico: The Growth and Distribution of Pharmacies in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico from 1996-2011
AUTHORS:
Patricia J. Boda
KEYWORDS:
Medication; Cross-Border Health Care; Medical Geography; US-Mexico Border
JOURNAL NAME:
International Journal of Geosciences,
Vol.4 No.6B,
August
22,
2013
ABSTRACT: US pharmacies tend to be located at intersections of major
cross streets throughout a city, while in the case of Mexican border cities pharmacies
are clustered close to US-Mexico border crossings. Presumably this is due
to the volume of US clients who frequent the pharmacies. Although the precise number
of border crossings to purchase medications is unclear, it is thought to be significant. In the past, patient-based
surveys were the primary source for information regarding US residents crossing
the border into Mexico for prescription medications. The current study examines
the distribution of pharmacies throughout Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico, recording
the change in the number of pharmacies over a 15-year period and suggesting the
scale of US residents who use Mexican pharmacies. Field research was conducted in
1996 and 2011. Maps showing the location of pharmacies for these two years indicate
a clustering of pharmacies within one and one-half miles of the city’s two principal
border-crossings between the United States and Mexico. Provider-based surveys revealed
that the majority of patients who use pharmacies closest to the border were US residents.