Role of GIS in Tracking and Controlling Spread of Disease For Dr. Baqer Al-Ramadan By Syed Imran Quadri CRP 514: Introduction to GIS
• Introduction • Problem Statement • Objectives • Methodology of Study • Literature Review • Case Study • Prevention And Control • Conclusions • Recommendations
Introduction • An infection process is the interaction of a pathogenic microorganism with a macro organism under certain environmental and social conditions. • Microorganisms causing infectious diseases parasites on host and persist due to continuous reproduction of new generation which change their properties in accordance with evolution of the environment conditions.
Introduction ( Cont…) • GIS has emerged as an important component of many projects in public health and epidemiology • Geographic information systems (GIS) provide ideal platforms for the convergence of disease-specific information and their analyses in relation to population settlements, surrounding social and health services and the natural environment
Introduction ( Cont…) GIS is being used in, • surveillance and monitoring of vector-borne diseases, water-borne diseases, in environmental health • analysis of disease policy and planning • health situation in an area, generation and analysis of research hypotheses
Problem Statement • Understanding the determinants of a disease, and its spread from person to person and community to community, has become increasingly global • GIS plays a vital tool in strengthening the whole process of epidemiological surveillance information management and analysis
Objectives • The main objective is to discuss the role of GIS in tracking and controlling the spread of diseases which are of epidemic nature and the feasible applications of GIS in identifying their catchment area. • This paper discusses the case studies for various diseases with a special treatment to West Nile virus using GIS.
Methodology of Study • Studying the spread of disease and applying techniques in tracking and controlling it. • Literature related to the problem • Presenting Case studies
Literature Review • There are various categories under which the infectious diseases fall. • These include vector borne diseases, airborne diseases, waterborne diseases, food borne diseases, and plant and fish diseases. • High-risk areas can be identified using GIS and remote sensing technologies that would otherwise be difficult to detect using traditional methods
Literature Review (Cont…) • Control and education programs can be directed toward these areas with more confidence and effectiveness • GIS provides excellent means for visualizing and analyzing epidemiological data, revealing trends, dependencies and inter-relationships. • GIS serves as a common platform for convergence of multi-disease surveillance activities
Literature Review (Cont…) GIS helps us out in many ways, • Find out geographical distribution and variation of diseases • Map populations at risk and stratify risk factors • Forecast epidemics
Literature Review (Cont…) • Monitor diseases and interventions over time • Route health workers, equipments and supplies to service locations • Locate the nearest health facility
Literature Review (Cont…) • West Nile virus (WNV) is a potentially serious illness. Experts believe WNV is established as a seasonal epidemic • Generally, WNV is spread by the bite of an infected mosquito. Mosquitoes are WNV carriers that become infected when they feed on infected birds
Case Study: Fight The Bite With GIS • Implementation of GIS in the VSC program has helped communicate and respond to the increased activity associated with the threat and imminent arrival of West Nile Virus • GIS has helped the VSC program realize management goals such as improved communication, reduction in resources and costs, and enhanced staff technical skills
Case Study (Cont…) • VSC continually focuses on mosquito control, rat control, and surveillance activities for vector-borne diseases such as plague and hantavirus. • Most recently, West Nile Virus (WNV) has been transmitted to humans from mosquitoes at a rapid rate
Case Study (Cont…) • The first GIS project implemented in VSC was to map the known mosquito breeding sources • These sources are referred to as sites by the VSC staff and are recorded in an Access database using a unique site number. • Additional information such as amount of treatment material applied and the site visit date is associated with each site number
Case Study (Cont…) • The accuracy of the initial source GIS layer was lacking the accuracy needed to perform a point-to-polygon geoprocessing technique to assign property ownership to each source • In order to map the sources, VSC staff received training on a DEH GIS intranet based mapping application developed in ESRI Map Objects
Case Study (Cont…) • DEH GIS mapping application interface the mosquito breeding sources (yellow triangles), and the results of a basic report (or query) on a selected site.
Case Study (Cont…) • VSC staff also received training on Global Positioning Systems (GPS) technology. • Integration of GPS with GIS allows the field technician to capture the site location in the field. • GPS was used in identifying some sites and in refining the locations of other sites.
Case Study (Cont…) • GIS techniques were used to determine exact location, area, and amount of larvicide's for treatment • This allowed for better contract specifications and communication among VSC staff, contractors & other agencies
Case Study (Cont…) map illustrates the aerial mosquito larvicide's applications
Case Study (Cont…) The map resides on the website and informs the public of WNV test results in San Diego County.
Case Study (Cont…) • During pilot testing, a GIS buffer technique was used to identify and notify schools near the area of aerial application • Overall, the use of GIS technology has improved the VSC program by providing problem-solving and decision-making tools
Prevention and Control Surveillance Larval Mosquito Surveillance Adult Mosquito Surveillance Virus Surveillance Source Reduction Sanitation Water Management Chemical Control Larviciding Adulticiding Biological Control
Conclusions • GIS is an effective tool to monitor and control the various infectious diseases. • No research covered a wide number of contagious diseases with a common methodology with respect to GIS application • GIS response has proven to be an invaluable tool and has been integrated as a major component of the West Nile virus Surveillance and Treatment Program
Conclusions • Tracking Analyst makes it possible to explore, visualize, and analyze West Nile Virus data relative to time, and has been very useful in determining the scope of an area that must be monitored. • A major benefit of the ArcView and Tracking Analyst has been in time saving against doing manual process • GIS aids in faster and better health mapping and analysis than the conventional methods.
Conclusions • It gives health professionals quick and easy access to large volumes of data • It provides a variety of dynamic analysis tools and display techniques for monitoring and management of epidemics • By tracking the sources of diseases and the movement of contagions, the populations at risk were identified
Recommendations • Health administrators, professionals and researchers need training and user support in GIS technology, data and epidemiological methods in order to use GIS properly and effectively • Mostly mosquitoes are active at dusk and dawn. Staying indoors during these times or using insect repellent is advisable
Recommendations • Developing vaccines and treatments as no specific vaccines or treatments exist for West Nile virus
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