2009 Implementers Group Meeting Program Geographic Information Systems
Overview
This is page relates to the GIS session in breakout room 2. It was clear that there are many unique use cases and many different tools being used.
Action
We need to get together and consolidate in order to move towards aligning efforts and not duplicating work.
Working Group
Please sign up for this working group: GIS Working Group
Extremely Rough Notes
These notes may or may not get edited.
Using GIS:
3 people, Peru, ?, ?
Kenya (Eldoret) collecting coordinates, but not using.
Moz: Are developing GIS system, wants to know best tools and best practices
Request for information about how different countries have delt with location in OPenMRs
More broadly: Integration with OpenMRS
Isaac:
Analogy with mobile: Working on common integration platform
Goal: try and develop similar intrgration methods with GIS
What would module do: represent geographic information generally
Interface with different mapping tools - interface layer
Identify common database format
Carol:
What to find a way to use GIS for public health
Cheryl:
How can we use this for service delivery?
James:
How Kenya is collecting data and what they're doing with it? (Use cases)
Isaac:
Is GPS too narrow, how do you deal with location?
From Eldoret:
Collecting GPS coordinate for home based counselling and testing. Coordinates are used
for following pregnant mothers not enrolled in ANC who may or may not be HIV+
Used: For followup (not widely used) and to get additional information [90% success rate]
Would like to use for epidemiolocal analysis
Cheryl:
Using it for addresses basically (which would be easy in other countries)
Eldoret:
Using PDA and Garmin Etrex GPS device
PDA to computer synchronisation
Challenge Pendragon is based on Access which is difficult to integrate with OpenMRS.
There is an initiative going on to program form on devices (e.g G1 phones) that can update OpenMRS.
Dave:
Similar in terms of how data is captured
Wrote interface for LIMA
Use Garmin hendhelds
Garmin publishes JS API
Morning: Sync with coordinates (addresses and id's)
Afternoon: Sync again and new obs get entered into OpenMRS
7000 TB cases
Sputum gets genotyping and the plan is to link geographic data
Lots of cluster analysis will be done
Would like sms to be used to enter coordinates into OpenMRS database
Carol:
What is the use for the data/tech after the study
Dave:
Wrote OMRS interface for the study
Goal: Identify certain gene knockouts
Want to know what makes strains easy or difficult to transmit
Jeremy:
Use GPS data to determine if patients are going to the right clinic
Topographic analysis for ease of travel
Sending mobile clinics
Aamir:
(His work inspired Cheryl to pilot her GIS work)
Use: Monitor field teams and supervisors
$250 GPS enable nokia phones
Users log in and store info
Log into Google earth interface to manage staff
see who's logged in (phone and ask if they're not on schedule)
Completed forms have date/timestamp
Small team to monitor large system/team
Manage (monitor) vehicles (food basket delivery and other services)
Also keep track of how long it takes from one place to another
Monitoring allows nation system to be managed by one person in the CApital
Patient CAre:
~~~~~~~~~~~~
TB and MDR TB patients are being mapped to their house
limits lost to followup
other health workers can find the house
monitor that health worker sees patient twice a day
Using chinese device with only one button and GPS which the patient presses when at home
because not enough health workers to follow all patients home. $85 bought in bulk
Allows high volumn of patients to central facility, and hand out devices and press when at home
losses of device are acceptable
Another use:
Very ill patients could press other buttons (there are 5 buttons in total) if they fall over or something
So it's a personal panic button with GPS location
Another use:
When they plot TB patients, they include census data
They get a sense if they should have more patients in a certain area
Help field teams to go in and meet with practitioners
Workflow:
Login form
Surveilance form, Service form
Logout form
For MDR-TB module, can click on patient in google earth interface, patient info is displayed on a popup in real time
Want patient alerts on the google earth interface so managers can sent health workers to certain areas
Want to allow health workers to attach voice packets (via phone) linked to patient info on google earth. Also alerts.
Busy building for monitoring, haven't had time to think about evaluation
Esp interested because the system and 8 others have been budgeted for by Pakistan
Carols:
All systesm will be good for research and interesting questions can be answered
Need to sustain the systems
Aamir:
Need to stop development and focus on integration
Need a single stable download
Problem: money availble after systems developed
Issac:
How is OPenMRS talking to the systems
David:
Thinks its directly at database level
Isaac:
UShahiti(?) is open source mapping tool for crises
Has some common developers with Baobab and OpenMRS
MAy consider open source to make integration easier
Solves cluster mapping problem (high concentrations can get lost)
Cheryl:
Interesting the variety of use cases (SErvice, Research, Management)
WHO:
Working with aggregated data
Uses: service availablity mapping
India, Zanibar, Tanzania: GIS to look at aggregated data
Combine with monthly service data
Basically service use mapping
Look at something like maternal death, ask where you have birthing facilities
working with DHIS and GIS for a while
WHO Health Mapper, working closely with
Tool that WHO has provided to support service availablility mapping, import sources
Import your own data
Nice to have mapping separated from data
GUext is javascript mapping tool
Used by managers, so needs to be simplified interface (giving overviews etc)
Health Mapper 5 will be web based
Using in Sierra Leone (not under Health Mapper name)
No release date for Health Mapper 5
launchpad had DHIS GIS project
Cheryl:
Rwanda has use for mapping villiages
Current standard for chief;s house to be centre of villiage
Looked mapping individuals and villiages
difficult for scaling up
can't answer all research questions
Have a few thousand villiages
Want to attach villiages to address hierarchy
Some patients will have two levels of address
Need to work out of how to define locations
Thinking about hosing coordinates in PostGIS
have been collecting more than health information
can use for analysis
Want to develop and integration module
Carol:
What are the different ways of mapping locations
Wonders about different ontologies
Public health implications
Rwanda:
problem: what units can we use to map space
have: distrit, cell, umadugadu(?)
government changes categorisations of areas
cost of mapping lowest categories is expensive, so getting centroids
modelling and projections are being dones (e.g. project a umadugadu)
want to collection other information
want to empower local chief to monitor their own health
problems: what the best way to present statistical data to local uneducated person
let local people draw boundaries to their village
enpower locals to become partners in management of their own health
Carol:
Can't use name as concept because of cultural requirement (change name when someone dies)
Noted the difference between people needs and tech needs
Cheryl:
Mapped homes of HIV patients
Worked with government and provided information to them
Had good responses from local leaders
People were exited about satellites
Don't assume people won't be exited about learning about tech and involving comminuties
Good bridge into community because you can show them maps etc.
?:
Noted Rwanda has hierarchy of regional structures
problem: combining h1n1 data from different places in the states
data is reported differently
noted that something about location that is not very satifying
have developed nice ontology