Place and health are not “fixed
realities but are situated and socially produced in particular contexts. What
this means is that GIS are being used in public health studies to model where
people live and the environments they experience through their day to day
lives. With this information, it can be mapped out where the higher health risk
areas are and where emergency services are needed. Understanding issues ranging
from medical epidemiology to health care access requires a comprehensive
understanding of their spatial distribution as well as the physical, social,
and psychological environments with which they occur in. Researchers, public
health professionals, and policymakers use GIS to better understand the
geographic relationships that affect health outcomes, public health risks,
disease transmission, access to health care, and other public health concerns.
This study presents a methodology
for performing health emergency assessments and generating hazard maps that
show areas that are potentially at high risk for health emergencies. The goal
of collected this data is to take action on the planning, management, and
prevention levels of emergency situations. Using neural networks and GIS theory
researchers and analysts are able to create intelligence. This intelligence is
then used to predict the mathematical patterns regarding the locations of
emergency events. The power of GIS comes from the ability to relate different
information in a spatial context and to reach a conclusion about the
relationship.
Grekousis, G., & Photis, Y. N. (2014). Analyzing high-risk emergency areas with GIS and neural networks: The case of Athens, Greece. The Professional Geographer, 66(1), 124-137. | |
I have acted with honesty and integrity in producing this work and am unaware of anyone who has not. -Daniel Buffington
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This seems like a very promising use of GIS! What factors should be considered when creating these maps? Average household income? Access to healthcare? Previous emergency calls? % of residents living in poverty?
ReplyDeleteInteresting! I wonder if this will lead to an increase in hospitals and other emergency healthcare centers in this area?
ReplyDeleteThis is very helpful in predicting a health emergency. By mapping out hot spots, the emergency services are prepared and most likely are ready to go to or near these hot spots in case of an emergency.
ReplyDeleteThe comprehensive information able to be contrived from GIS mapping has become fundamental in understanding how to deal with events such as the oil spill off the Gulf of Mexico and the water levels present in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Identifying the multifaceted affects of disasters is necessary in developing strategies to improve the environments and populations, and create infrastructure and plans to combat future emergency situations. Interesting!
ReplyDeleteIt would be great if emergency centers could use this information in order to make their processes quicker and more time efficient!
ReplyDelete