Geocoding health data with Geographic Information Systems: a pilot study in northeast Italy for developing a standardized data-acquiring format

Introduction. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have become an innovative and somewhat crucial tool for analyzing relationships between public health data and environment. This study, though focusing on a Local Health Unit of northeastern Italy, could be taken as a benchmark for developing a standardized national data-acquiring format, providing a step-by-step instructions on the manipulation of address elements specific for Italian language and traditions. Methods. Geocoding analysis was carried out on a health database comprising 268,517 records of the Local Health Unit of Rovigo in the Veneto region, covering a period of 10 years, starting from 2001 up to 2010. The Map Service provided by the Environmental Research System Institute (ESRI, Redlands, CA), and ArcMap 10.0 by ESRI\uae were, respectively, the reference data and the GIS software, employed in the geocoding process. Results. The first attempt of geocoding produced a poor quality result, having about 40% of the addresses matched. A procedure of manual standardization was performed in order to enhance the quality of the results, consequently a set of guiding principle were expounded which should be pursued for geocoding health data. High-level geocoding detail will provide a more precise geographic representation of health related events. Conclusions. The main achievement of this study was to outline some of the difficulties encountered during the geocoding of health data and to put forward a set of guidelines, which could be useful to facilitate the process and enhance the quality of the results. Public health informatics represents an emerging specialty that highlights on the application of information science and technology to public health practice and research. Therefore, this study could draw the attention of the National Health Service to the underestimated problem of geocoding accuracy in health related data for environmental risk assessment

Geocoding health data with Geographic Information Systems: a pilot study in northeast Italy for developing a standardized data-acquiring format

AbstractIntroduction: Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have become an innovative and even more crucial tool for analyzing relationships between public health data and environment. This study, though focusing on a Local Health Unit of northeastern Italy, could be taken as a benchmark for developing a standardized national data acquiring format.Methods: Geocoding analysis was carried out on a health database comprising 268,517 records of the Local Health Unit of Rovigo in the Veneto region, covering a period of 10 years, starting from 2001 up to 2010. The Map Service provided by the Environmental Research System Institute (ESRI, Redlands, CA), and ArcMap 10.0 by ESRI® were, respectively, the reference data and the GIS software, employed in the geocoding process.Results: The first attempt of geocoding produced a poor quality result, having about 40% of the addresses matched. A procedure of manual standardization was performed in order to enhance the quality of the results, consequently a set of guiding principle were expounded which should be pursued for geocoding health data. High-level geocoding detail will provide a more precise geographic representation of health related events.Conclusions: The main achievement of this study was to outline some of the difficulties encountered during the geocoding of health data and to put forward a set of guidelines, which could be useful to facilitate the process and enhance the quality of the results. Public health informatics represents an emerging specialty that highlights on the application of information science and technology to public health practice and research. Therefore, this study could draw the attention of the National Health Service to the underestimated problem of geocoding accuracy in health related data for environmental risk assessment

The modeling of archaeological and geomorphic surfaces in a multistratified urban site in Padua, Italy

Multistratified archaeological sites are important archives of past human activities, recording the superposition of anthropogenic deposits over centuries and millennia. We attempted the reconstruction of buried geomorphic and archaeological surfaces in the 1.55 km2, 7 m thick, multistratified urban site of Padua in northern Italy, through the spatial interpolation of 117 elevation points relative to unique archaeological features. Key data were the elevations above sea level of ancient surfaces and features, such as the presettlement alluvial plain, roads, floors, and hearths dating from Bronze to Imperial Roman ages. Present surface elevations were provided by a Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) digital elevation model. Spline interpolation produced general-trend surfaces of the buried alluvial plain, Iron Age (13thâ\u80\u9310th and 6th centuries B.C.), and Roman (first century B.C. and first to second centuries A.D.) levels. Validation of the later Roman surface indicates a decimeter accuracy of interpolation. Geographic information system overlay operations resulted in quantitative estimates of the vertical growth of the site, the volumes of archaeological deposits, and the depth of burial of the different levels. This research provided new insights on the development of the ancient city and its relations with paleohydrography, representing a starting point for the assessment of buried archaeological heritage