Putting healthcare on the map

"The wide availability of lowcost or no-cost mapping software such as Google Earth puts GIS in the hands of more people, he said. The greater openness of data is another important force. Open content efforts such as OpenStreet- Map makes GIS data available without the attached strings of usage limitations. The Department of Health & Human Services, meanwhile, has pledged to serve up more of its data, which could find its way into GIS applications. More data means richer health GIS applications, as more layers of data populate maps. It also means public health officials will need to spend more time combing and managing the expected torrent of new data....Free and open technologies and data have already had an impact in Haiti, where the medical community’s response to the January 2010 earthquake included ad-hoc GIS components...."