Developing Health Geographic Information Systems (HGIS) for Khorasan Province in

Iran (Technical Report)

S.H. Sanaei-Nejad, (MSc, PhD)Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran,

Sanaei_h@yahoo.co.ukwww.um.ac.ir/~sanaei

H.A.Faraji Sabokbar, (PhD)Tehran University, Iran,Faraji1382@yahoo.com

• Data acquisition,

• Preprocessing,

• Data management,

• Data manipulation and analysis and

• Product generation (Oranga, 1995).

The essential components of a GIS

Based on the above components, GIS can be used to investigate questions about location, condition, trends, routing and patterns of attributes.

The above characteristics of GIS make it essential

for the health service and management.

Because the health service facility, immunization,

demographic, health personnel, hydrological

system, and improved water supply facility

databases have different geographically defined

information. (Savigny, et. al., 1995).

Traditionally, health databases are used as feature attribute data without considering spatial dependency. In this project GIS was considered to use maps, which are prepared for health subjects and correlated to the different available databases.

In Iran

Three options to use GIS for health management:

Desktop GIS by which, maps and attribute data are used by implementing of a properly software. This system can be used individually by a manager or by one person or by a group of staff by installation the GIS in their personal computer.

Workstation GIS, by which maps and t attribute data are stored in a server computer and users are able to use a software map and data processing by their PC Via a Local Network.

Enterprise Web based GIS, which can be established to coordinate the system more efficiently by using World Wide Web as a platform to access the map and related attribute data

System Architecture of the K-HGIS plan

The main structure of the K-HGIS is a Content Management Systems (CMS) to construct network accessibility to the health databases and also to the maps and related attribute data.

Some benefits of web based CMS applications

• Allows non-technical users to easily update the web• Ensuring that users not gain access to secure areas• Monitoring updates prior to publishing• Remaining up to date for the web content • Allowing users to customize viewing contents with their own favorite• Presenting the web in the local language• Ability to add your plugging to the system when needed, and the system will detect and enables them automatically

• Spatial data preparing

• Feature attribute data preparing

• processing and management and spatially

relating of the feature attribute databases.

In the CMS, there are three main branches that we worked on them:

The CMS details, which have used for K-HGIS

Portal SystemTheme supportCustomizable viewMultiple language support

Security Control SystemSession managementLog file managementPage access controls

User Management SystemUser managementGroup managementPage access controls

Database Management System Database connectionsDatabase queriesXML convert

Document Management System

Archive documentsSearch documentsReport document

Report Management SystemReporting with different viewsExporting reports to custom file types

Map preparing and difficulties

Preparing thematic maps and related attribute data is the main problem in establishing enterprise GIS. This is more difficult task in developing countries and become more problematic when the enterprise GIS is for health service and management.

•Maps and spatial data sources, traditionally, are not used in this section. •There are limited map sources available in other governmental organization that can be used as basically thematic maps for HGIS, in Khorasan province.•Some other maps should have been prepared by fieldwork using GPS and also address matching procedure.

DigitizerScanner

Digital camera

GPS

Time & Cost

CAD OverlayArc ViewArc Info

R2V&...

Hardware Software

Selecting

Of

Digitizing

Procedure

1The first control

The original paper maps, which are available

The maps to be prepared originally

Digital maps Base maps Health thematic maps

AvailablalityScaleQualityProducing timeThe ownerMap informationData format….

Topographic mapsRiver & DrianageRural pointsUrban areaRoadsAdministrationmaps….

HospitalsHealth centersGeneral patients centersPharmacy & drugstoresLocal health servicesRadio-trophy centers….

Paper maps

Digitizing procedure for producing maps for K-HGIS

2Collecting the available

maps

Digitizing procedure for producing maps for K-HGIS

Digitizing methods

Scanning the paper maps

Investigating into digital methods

Selecting the most convenience method

Scanning the paper maps

Producing the reference grid

Transforming of the reference codes

Coordinate conversion

Vectorizing

Final map ediGeographic coordinate of the gridt

Projection

Text correction

The first editing to omit back ground

Filtering

Converting to binary codes

SavingFinal control and saving

The structure of traditional databases in the health service and management of Khorasan were analyzed. The analyses showed that the number of fields in the data bases are very high, which organized into different relational tables, but the architecture of the data bases are very simple.

The structure of traditional databases in the health service and management of Khorasan were analyzed. The analyses showed that the number of fields in the data bases are very high, which organized into different relational tables, but the architecture of the data bases are very simple.

This traditional databases are static and update procedure is time consuming and also bureaucratically complicate. The new database

We used some open sources software and developed it according to the K-HGIS needs. The software appropriately meets the needs and is ready to install in the server. It is well developed to support native languages and also the related feature attribute data.

Designing the web map service

Several tools are designed to access the health service maps and also the related data. zoom in, zoom out, pan, layer management, multi layer map, scaling up and down, positioning and coordinate and search tools to make the software more useful for user via WWW.