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Public Health Resources for OPAL

This guide offers a collection of sources to support public health research.

What is GIS?

You may be wondering what is GIS and how is it relevant to Public Health? According to the CDC "GIS, or geographic information systems, are computer-based tools used to store, visualize, analyze, and interpret geographic data. Geographic data (also called spatial, or geospatial data) identifies the geographic location of features.These data include anything that can be associated with a location on the globe, or more simply anything that can be mapped. For example, roads, country boundaries, and address are all types of spatial data."

GIS Software

ArcGIS-Build interactive web maps with ArcGIS Online, Esri's web-based mapping software. Gain new perspectives and enhanced details as you interact with data, zoom in, and search on the map. Use smart, data-driven mapping styles and intuitive analysis tools to gain location intelligence. Work effectively across your organization by collaboratively building and using maps. Share your insights with specific people or the entire world.

Maptive- Maptive GIS software transforms rows of geographic data into maps, making it quick and easy for the user to get insights, make decisions, and understand massive volumes of data effortlessly.

Grass GIS- GRASS GIS offers powerful raster, vector, and geospatial processing engines in a single integrated software suite. It includes tools for terrain and ecosystem modeling, hydrology, visualization of raster and vector data, management and analysis of geospatial data, and the processing of satellite and aerial imagery. It comes with a temporal framework for advanced time series processing and a Python API for rapid geospatial programming. GRASS GIS has been optimized for performance and large geospatial data analysis.

The Open Source Geospatial Foundation-The Open Source Geospatial Foundation (OSGeo) is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to foster global adoption of open geospatial technology by being an inclusive software foundation devoted to an open philosophy and participatory community driven development.

 

 

 

Popular GIS Projects in Public Health

The Dartmouth Atlas of Health Care- For more than 20 years, The Dartmouth Atlas Project has documented glaring variations in how medical resources are distributed and used in the United States. The project uses Medicare and Medicaid data to provide information and analysis about national, regional, and local markets, as well as hospitals and their affiliated physicians.

Mapping Broadband Health in America- The Mapping Broadband Health in America platform allows users to visualize, overlay and analyze broadband and health data at the national, state and county levels.  The maps are an interactive experience, enabling detailed study of the intersection between connectivity and health for every county in the United States.  The resulting maps can be used by both public and private sectors, and local communities, to identify opportunities and gaps in connectivity and care.

PublicHealthMaps-PublicHealthMaps is an independent, data-driven, 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization based in the Washington, District of Columbia metropolitan area in the United States of America. Our mission is to empower people with greater understanding about public health, maps, and everything in between.

Weekly Influenza Map - A Weekly Influenza Surveillance Report Prepared by the Influenza Division