The classification of web-based maps is widely discussed elsewhere. A vector-viewing program draws shapes at specified sets of coordinates. In a vector graphic system, the image is described as a series of geometric shapes. The series of pixels is termed a bitmap and can be stored in a compressed format (JPEG, GIF, and PNG). Each pixel is represented by its Red Green Blue (RGB) color values. In raster graphics, an image is represented as a rectangle of picture elements or pixels. The two main data structures for representing graphics information on computer are raster and vector graphics. Mapping in this context is viewed mostly as a tool to communicate information effectively to the immunization stakeholders. The standard color codes used in WHO AFRO are: red for immunization coverage below 50%, yellow for coverage between 50% to 80% and green for coverage above 80%. In EPI choropleth (thematic) maps, coverage data that fall within a specific class interval are assigned a unique color code. To monitor country immunization coverage, choropleth mapping is the preferred approach. The operational unit of EPI activities is the health district, the boundaries of which may or may not coincide with administrative subdivision boundaries. More specifically, GIS in EPI is used to visually display and compare immunization coverage data among districts, regions, and countries (thematic maps) and to track changes in disease location (dot density maps). GIS is now an integral component of EPI management and is used to evaluate and plan immunization activities. The program involves a coalition of partners (governments, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and religious agencies) and promotes the use of data for action. In this paper, we summarize our methodology and demonstrate the potential of a free and open standard to contribute to the dissemination of EPI information by providing interactive maps to a wider audience through the Internet.ĮPI was launched by WHO in 1977 with the objective of immunizing 80% of the world's children against six of the most deadly vaccine-preventable diseases. We applied this system to Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) data from three countries of WHO AFRO (World Health Organization – African Region). We used Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) to develop a database-driven web-based GIS. The publication and distribution of spatial data are increasingly important activities enabling organizations to share maps as images over the Internet. Recently, web-based GIS have emerged as a solution to allow the access of geospatial information to a wider audience with limited computer and GIS knowledge. Meanwhile, the need to access geospatial information has grown among public health professionals, policy makers, managers, researchers, students and the general public. However, GIS technology requires considerable skills in order to be fully operational and, for this reason, is sometimes understood and used by only a few specialists within the public health community. The many GIS tools range from simple free mapping software to highly sophisticated applications, usually based on proprietary technology and data formats. GIS are useful for visually analyzing epidemiological data and revealing trends and relationships that may be hidden in a tabular form view. The proliferation of computers, associated with the rapid growth in the number of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) tools, has made spatial analysis of pathological factors and their relationship to the environment a common practice in public health research. The geography of disease has been dramatically improved by information technology since the map of cholera cases in Soho by John Snow.
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