GIS and Health Care: Educational Needs Assessment Cindy Gotz, MPH, CHES Janice Frates, Ph.D. Suzanne Wechsler, Ph.D. Departments of Health Care Administration & Geography California State University Long Beach
Purpose Study conducted to determine the needs of the health care workforce related to GIS use, incorporation and training.
Terms The health care workforce includes; health care administration management policy
Background Literature on the use of GIS in private sector health care organizations and for health policy research and implementation was sparse se Available literature focuses on applications of GIS using public health-related data Few published studies focus on how GIS is used for health care business purposes Gap related to the workforce training needs associated with the use of this powerful analytical tool was evident
Literature Review According to the National Cancer Institute, GIS is a geospatial tool which can be utilized to identify and display geographic patterns of disease, assess environmental exposures, estimate incidence,,p prevalence and survival statistics, and expose health disparities to communicate clearly with the public, business and political leaders A trend in health policy, research, planning and management is the increasingly i important role of health informatics (Kurland & Gorr, 2006). With additional data becoming available through these automated and integrated systems there will be more data to feed into GIS systems. Examining the relationships between health access and outcomes to determine how health care delivery can be improved is an area of needed research (McLafferty, 2003).
GIS & Health Care Themes The recent concern with increasing obesity prevalence has stimulated research employing GIS at various levels of analysis GIS is used as a tool for achieving business growth goals CA HMO regulations result in use of GIS to depict member access to services
Study Genesis Industry contacts and anecdotal information revealed or indicated increasing use of GIS in both public and private health organizations at o and a related growing demand for these skills in the health administration workforce Study designed to assess this trend and the GIS training needs of the California health care workforce Funding received from a CSU Long Beach internal grant IRB approval obtained
Aims Survey instrument developed Needs assessment Determine health care workforce use, incorporation and training needs related to Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Focus on health care administration, management and policy Results to be used as a basis for developing a course to address the educational needs of the next generation of health care administrators
Methods Developed Web based Survey Tool using SurveyMonkey * TM Instrument Developed by Research Team Questionnaire consisted of 20 questions related to: Current GIS Use Training and Education Needs Qualifications of GIS Employees Data use and sources *http://www.surveymonkey.com/
Sample Convenience Sample Target participants were health care professionals working in the state of California for both private and public health related organizations (N=134) Sample n=60
Respondent Organization Type Organization Type %of Total HMO 21% Local Health Department 21% CBO 14% HHS 13% Government 7% Education 7% Consultants 7% Physician/Medical Group 5% Trade Associations 4% State Health Department 1%
Results How Long has Organization used GIS? 10+ years 16% Less than 1 year 9% 1-3 years 21% 5-10 years 38% 3-5 years 16% 38% of respondents have used GIS in their health care organization for 5 to 10 years
How Many People in Organization Use GIS? 10+ 5 to 10 3to5 1 to 3 1 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 1 to 3 people within an organization utilize GIS as a part of their job function.
Average Annual Salary for New GIS Employee 45% 40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 5% 0% Less than $40,000 $40,000-50,000 $50,000-60,000 $60,000-70,000 $70,000+ The average salary for new GIS employees was reported to be between $40,000 and $50,000
Educational Qualifications for GIS Use Master's degree 12% GIS certificate 5% College degree 29% None, as long as they can use the technology 54% As long as the employee can use the technology no additional As long as the employee can use the technology, no additional qualifications are required by over 50% of the respondents
Utilization of Data Geographic Subdivisions Used 120% 100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 0% Zip code County City Census tract Political district Health planning subdivision
90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Information GIS is Used to Display Customer/member/pati ent place of employment Competitor facility locations Other (please specify) Shortest distance paths/networks (e.g. ambulance routes) Disease incidence or prevalence (e.g., percent of obese children) Customer/member/pati ent place of residence Provider locations (e.g., primary care physician office locations) Service area population demographics (e.g., number of people 65+) The majority of respondents reported using GIS to display service area demographics and provider locations
Discussion Using GIS for rudimentary purposes focusing on density of patients within a particular service area or the distribution of disease Discipline is still in its infancy within the healthcare sector GIS is expected to grow significantly ifi over the next decade
Anecdotal Data Business development, marketing department or the Information Systems department typical area for GIS The larger organization was frequently unfamiliar with the term geographic information systems or GIS
Limitations Sample limited to California Small sample less than half of identified organizations responded
Conclusion: Survey Analysis As the use of GIS within health care organizations continues to grow and develop, formal training and education will be required specifically targeted to health care problems, data and personnel. Workforce readiness in this evolving technology will continue to demand more than on the job training to utilize GIS to its full power and capability While industry users focus will be on learning how to use the software, educators need to incorporate a broader perspective into their instructional activities, imparting knowledge as well as conducting skills training, in order to ensure that GIS is used responsibly.
Conclusion: Survey Analysis (cont.) According to the High Growth Job Training Initiative, the health services sector is targeted as an area where geospatial technology skills are needed (U.S. Department of Labor, 2005) Health geoinformatics is an emerging discipline that uses GIS as innovative scientific and geospatial technology to investigate health issues. GIS allows the analysis and display of complex information in a visually exciting, easily comprehensible format to help improve health delivery systems and practices.
Research Outcome Non-geography g majors in health disciplines who use GIS require efficient training in geographic concepts upon which the technology is based. CSULB s Health Care Administration and Geography Departments collaborated to deliver health geoinformatics education to future health care professionals in our diverse community. The course was offered for the first time in spring 2009 and is open to all majors. It provides training using examples from the health field to aid in decision support activities.
Course Description An introduction to the fundamentals of geographic information science and systems (GIS) including concepts and skills in spatial reasoning and spatial thinking. Explores GIS in spatial query, problem analysis and decision support using health-related applications.
Course Learning Objectives Students who have completed this course should be able to: Demonstrate an understanding of the basic principles and concepts of GIS and their application to the field of health and health care. Analyze a spatial problem(s) using GIS techniques. Apply GIS principles, concepts and scientific method to solve health problems. Synthesize skills and knowledge by team evaluation and addressing spatial health problems.
Summary Increased utilization of GIS in Health Care settings will increase the need for education and training Health Care educators need to incorporate geospatial analysis into instructional activities
Questions
References Kurland, K.S. & Gorr, W.L. (2006) GIS Tutorial for Health.. California: i ESRI Press. McLafferty, S.L. (2003). GIS and Health Care. Annual Review Public Health.. 24:25-42. 42. National Cancer Institute (2006). Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Cancer Research. National Institutes of Health Publication No. 07-6096 U.S. Department of Labor, 2005. President s High Growth Job Training Initiative: Identifying and Addressing Workforce Challenges in America s Geospatial Technology Sector. Available at: http://www.doleta.gov/brg/pdf/geospatial%20final %20Report_08212007.pdf p
Thank You! Contact: Cindy Gotz 562-985 985-5414 5414 cgotz@csulb.edu