GIS State Surveillance Training Program: Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services

BACKGROUND:   The objective of the training project was to enhance the ability of Nebraska State Health Department to integrate the use of GIS informed surveillance into daily operations that support the prevention of heart disease, stroke and other chronic diseases. The project was intentionally designed to develop a GIS infrastructure that would serve a vast array of chronic disease areas, yet with a focus on heart disease and stroke.

METHODS:   The Children’s Environmental Health Initiative of the School of Natural Resources and Environment at the University of Michigan provided GIS workshops to four public health staff. The trainings focused on developing strategies for integrating GIS into daily operations, establishing an expanded GIS team with members from the state health department that will assist in developing and disseminating projects that utilize GIS.  In addition the Children’s Environmental Health Initiative provided the ARCGIS software for the staff attending the training and provided support between trainings.  

RESULTS:   During the training period several maps were created to demonstrate how GIS could be used in Nebraska.  Of these maps, three were selected to demonstrate Nebraska’s GIS work.  The first is a map of hospitalization rates for heart disease shown by county.  The second is a map showing Quitline fax referrals from healthcare professionals by county per 10,000 residents.  The Quitline provides tobacco cessation coaching/counseling and has a fax referral program to provide tobacco cessation products.  The final map shows driving times to hospitals across the State of Nebraska.

CONCLUSIONS:   The trainings provided by the Children’s Environmental Health Initiative have given the Nebraska State Health Department the infrastructure and skills in order to use GIS and integrate it into the public health programs supported by the State Health Department.  The State Health Department plans to expand the role of GIS in the future to additional programs and highlight the importance of GIS in it’s work.