The U.S. healthcare industry is changing and shifting its focus toward prevention and community health. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and interactive mapping can help healthcare clients visualize problem areas in their communities and help answer questions about how best to improve community health with limited financial resources. This research project reviewed existing literature to determine what aspects are related to community health. The literature suggests that levels of income and education, employment and health insurance status, as well as access to transportation and food, are all related to community health. The research methodology was to create a GIS map using publicly available and open-source data to visualize these community health indicators using Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia as a case study. This work provides a detailed a road-map for future projects to enable teams to implement health mapping data.
This article originally appeared in Vol 08.02 of the Perkins+Will Research Journal. CLICK HERE to see the whole article.
