COVID-19 incidence and mortality in the Metropolitan Region, Chile: time, space, and structural factors

Villalobos Dintrans, P.; Castillo, C.; de la Fuente, F.; Maddaleno, M.

Chile has been heavily affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. This article analyzes the association of different groups of factors-demographic, health-related, and socioeconomic-on COVID-19-related outcomes. Using the municipalities of the Metropolitan Region the study looks at the role of time dynamics, space and place in cases and deaths during a 100-days period. Results show that common and idiosyncratic elements that explain the prevalence and dynamics of infections and mortality, with an important role of social determinants of health, particularly multidimensional poverty index and use of public transportation, in explaining differences in outcomes. The article contributes to the understanding of the determinants of COVID-19 outcomes in a specific region, but also highligths the need to consider time-space dynamics and social determinants as key in the analysis. The results are specially relevant for similar research in unequal settings.