SIYASAL-JOURNAL OF POLITICAL SCIENCES, vol.29, no.1, pp.51-68, 2020 (ESCI)
Cities can be defined as the areas where the need for health and security is at greater level due to rapid changes and transformation. The expansion of cities has led to multi-component urban problems. Thus, any emerging problems in urban settings should be handled with a holistic approach, focusing on economic, social, cultural, educational, justice, and health issues. There are many available tools such as the urban life index, and healthy cities index, which can be used to evaluate the characteristics of city life. The main purpose of these indexes is to determine the quality of life in cities in terms of the above-mentioned factors. When the indicators in these indexes are examined, it seems that the focus has shifted towards capacity utilization in health and security services. On the contrary, the focus should be on improving health status, and developing security levels in the urban context. In this respect, it is important to determine the policies that have possible positive impacts and implications on health and security. Increasingly, practitioners should seek new guidance on the activities that can support the creation of a better life in cities. This paper attempts to examine the healthy city indicators in the urban security context. For this purpose, quantitative research design is employed to illuminate the relationship between health and security outcomes in Turkey. After weighting and normalizing the variables statistically, the cumulative health and security scores of the cities are calculated. Using the proposed index (which reflects both apparent and obscure linkages between health and security in cities), may contribute to agenda setting and promoting practical outcomes.