WHO HealthMap

HealthMap is a joint WHO/UNICEF Programme based within the Department of Communicable Disease Surveillance and Response. The Programme was initially created in 1993 to establish a Geographic Information System (GIS) to support management and monitoring of the Guinea Worm Eradication Programme. Since 1995, however, in response to the increasing demand for mapping and GIS from a much wider range of public health administrators, the scope of the work has been broadened to include the promotion and use of GIS for other disease control programmes and other public health programmes in general.

Recent advances in geographic information and mapping technologies have created new opportunities for public health administrators to enhance their planning, management and monitoring capabilities. These technologies can help planners better assess and analyse the spatial relationships of factors and constraints in the implementation of public health programmes.

The past 5 years have seen a significant expansion in information and mapping technology including development of desktop mapping software, new programming tools for customisation of mapping products, and increasing connectivity to information highways including the World Wide Web.

The public health professionals in developing countries, however, who are often in the best position to exploit information and mapping technologies have in many cases been the last to receive the technology. This has mainly been due to lack of funding, lack of access to simple technology and lack of awareness of the opportunities that these technologies provide.

The objective of the HealthMap programme is to reach a significant proportion of these public health administrators by :

• Providing access to simple, low cost management and mapping systems;

• Expanding the network of technical support & data distribution channels;

• Stimulating partnerships at all levels in a effort to synergise approaches to geographic information and mapping system development.

The HealthMap project has successfully contributed to the control, prevention and eradication of communicable diseases: Guinea worm, Onchocerciasis, Lymphatic filariasis, schistosomiasis and intestinal parasites, and in elimination of blinding trachoma. Other HealthMap achievements include mapping malaria, HIV surveillance, integrated disease surveillance, and health system strengthening.

• Download WHO HealthMap Major Achievements Reports.

The HealthMapper Application

The HealthMapper is a database management and mapping system that has been developed to support planning and decision-making at both macro and micro levels. The HealthMapper simplifies the collection, storage, retrieval, management and analysis of public health data. Moreover it simplifies the use of geographic information systems and mapping and provides a user-friendly interface to spatial and statistical analyses of public health data.

The HealthMapper comprises three components:

• A standardised geographic database containing maps and geographic coordinates of all geographic levels from village to global level. It also contains data on population, health and education services and safe water supply.

• A mapping interface that performs dynamic spatial and other standard statistical analyses in maps, tables, and charts.

• A data manager that allows users to enter, store, and retrieve surveillance and programmatic data at different levels of the system.

The HealthMapper can be customised to cater for specific data management and analytical needs of a given programme or country.

Using HealthMapper in Programme Monitoring

Effective systems for monitoring progress and outcomes are critical for all programme implementation. Community, district, national and global levels all require appropriate information for decision-making. Mapping and geographic information systems can serve as a powerful evidence-based tool for monitoring and evaluation based on the reality of what is happening in a given country, district or community.

Moreover, using one single standardised system such as the HealthMapper, it is possible to reconcile the needs for information for action at the local level with the information needs at national and global level required for macro level monitoring.

The map below shows how mapping can be used ton monitor surveillance interventions at regional level. By simple clicking on any region, one can dynamically access historical data to view trends. One can also use the system to make regional comparisons of programme implementation.

Health Geomatics
© 2000 Dr Maged N Kamel Boulos
MIM Centre, School of Informatics
City University, London, UK
All Rights Reserved.

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This page was last modified December 19, 2000
Module Editor and Web Designer: M.Nabih-Kamel-Boulos@soi.city.ac.uk