University of Lusaka

Transcription

1 University of Lusaka BSPH 315 Health Mapping & GIS Topic: Background of GIS Content: 1. Aim of the course 2. What do you know about GIS? 3. Difference between geographic data and geographic information 4. Brief Historical background of GIS 5. What is GIS? 6. The data entry process 7. Functions and applications of GIS Garikai Membele 1

2 Aim of the course This course aims at providing theoretical and practical aspect of geographic information systems (GIS) for public health. Objectives Explain the principles of GIS in public health and put them into practice. To use desktop GIS software packages and other spatial analysis software. 2

3 What do you know about GIS? 3

4 Background of GIS 1854 John Snow depicted a cholera outbreak in London, each point representing individual cases Removal of the pump handle led to a rapid decline of cholera, helping the medical community to eventually conclude that cholera was a water-borne disease. Incidence rate of cholera was also related to local elevation as well as soil type. This is an early example of what has come to be known as disease diffusion mapping. This is a classical example of how a GIS could benefit public health investigations and other research. 4

5 Background of GIS (Cont d) 1960 saw the development of the world s first true operational GIS in Ottawa, Ontario by the Department of Forestry and Rural Development Canada land Inventory. The Canadian GIS provided capabilities of overly, measurement, scanning and digitizing and supported a coordinate system. Hence Dr. Rodger Tomlinson is known as the father of GIS. 5

6 Background of GIS (Cont d) In 1964 a number of important theoretical concepts in spatial data handling were developed at Harvard Graduate School of Design in the Laboratory for Computer Graphics and Spatial Analysis. In the early 1980s the Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI), CARIS and ERDAS emerged as commercial vendors of GIS software They incorporated many of the CGIS features and added capabilities of organizing attribute data in database structures. By the end of the 20th century, the rapid growth in various systems had been consolidated and standardized on relatively few platforms and users were beginning to explore viewing GIS data over the internet requiring data format and transfer standards. The 21 st century has seen an increase in the use of GIS both in developed and developing countries. 6

7 What is GIS? An organized collection of computer hardware, software, geographic data and personnel designed to efficiently capture, store, update, manipulate, analyze and display all forms of geographically referenced information. ESRI, 1993 From Understanding GIS-The ARC/INFO Method. GIS Components 7

8 The data entry process 8

9 GIS is model. Garbage in garbage out. It is not an end in its self but a means to an end. 9

10 Functions commonly provided in a GIS 10

11 Applications of GIS Public Health Urban planning Transport planning Disaster management Land management Natural resource management Risk or vulnerability assessment Cartography Etc. 11

12 GIS allows the integration of data from different sources GIS 12

13 GIS and Public Health Health threats demand that public health professionals have a concrete understanding of the relationships among the various factors affecting health. 13

14 GIS and Public Health (Cont d) In recent years, public health practitioners have grown increasingly aware of the value GIS can add in developing an effective framework for action. GIS also makes it possible for public health professionals to visualize population health problems within the context of available social services, demographic factors and changes in environmental variables. 14

15 15

16 University of Zambia, Department of Geography and Environmental Studies 16

17 17

18 - END - 18