Geographical Information Systems (GIS) have developed rapidly in recent years and now provide powerful tools for the capture, manipulation, integration, interrogation, modelling, analysis and visualisation of data - tools that are already used for policy support in a wide range of areas at almost all geographic and administrative levels. This holds especially for emergency preparedness and health risk reduction, which are all essentially spatial problems. To date, however, many initiatives have remained disconnected and uncoordinated, leading to less powerful, less compatible and less widely implemented systems than might otherwise have been the case. The important matters discussed here include the probabilistic nature of most environmental hazards and the semi-random factors that influence interactions between these and human exposures; the effects of temporal and spatial scales on hazard assessment and imputed risk; the effects of measurement error in risk estimation and the stratification of risks and their impacts according to socioeconomic characteristics; and the quantification of socioeconomic differences in vulnerability and susceptibility to environmental hazards.

Although many books have been published on the application of GIS in emergency management and disaster response, this is the first one to bring together a comprehensive discussion of the critical role GIS plays in hospital and healthcare emergency management and disaster response. Illustrating a wide range of practical applications, GIS in Hospital

In the past few years the United States has experienced a series of disasters, such as Hurricane Katrina in 2005, which have severely taxed and in many cases overwhelmed responding agencies. In all aspects of emergency management, geospatial data and tools have the potential to help save lives, limit damage, and reduce the costs of dealing with emergencies. Great strides have been made in the past four decades in the development of geospatial data and tools that describe locations of objects on the Earth's surface and make it possible for anyone with access to the Internet to witness the magnitude of a disaster. However, the effectiveness of any technology is as much about the human systems in which it is embedded as about the technology itself. Successful Response Starts with a Map assesses the status of the use of geospatial data, tools, and infrastructure in disaster management, and recommends ways to increase and improve their use. This book explores emergency planning and response; how geospatial data and tools are currently being used in this field; the current policies that govern their use; various issues related to data accessibility and security; training; and funding. Successful Response Starts with a Map recommends significant investments be made in training of personnel, coordination among agencies, sharing of data and tools, planning and preparedness, and the tools themselves.

Discover a modern approach using geographic information systems (GIS) to understand threats and hazards to communities with Dealing with Disasters: GIS for Emergency Management.

The increase in the number of large-scale natural disasters in recent years has been alarming.Major fl oods, hurricanes, earthquakes and many others have affected millions of people, with great destruction of property and loss of life, while forest fires, pipeline failures, and bombings have had equally devastating affects over a smaller scale. It is clear that future threats stem both from human failures and from terrorism, as well as from less predictable natural phenomena. The increased threats make the convening of the Second International Conference on Disaster Management and Human Health Risk important for the sharing of knowledge among experts on public health, security, and disaster management. This book contains their contributions to the conference. Topics covered will include Emergency preparedness; Risk mitigation; Natural disasters; Man-made disasters; Learning from disasters; Disaster analysis, monitoring and mitigation; Global risks and health; Pandemic and biological threats; Surveillance and early warning systems; Public health preparedness; Socio-economic issues; and Service sustainability.

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) provide essential disaster management decision support and analytical capabilities. As such, homeland security professionals would greatly benefit from an interdisciplinary understanding of GIS and how GIS relates to disaster management, policy, and practice. Assuming no prior knowledge in GIS and/or disaster ma

This book can serve as a quick reference for either public health practitioners or public safety personnel who need quick information about disaster response for natural, man-made, and weapons of mass destruction. In addition, it identifies the public health role in each aspect of disaster activity, something that no other book has done. It also organizes morbidity and mortality concerns by disaster so that these negative outcomes can be referred to quickly.