The Bureau of Primary Care and Rural Health is responsible for monitoring and developing access to healthcare services throughout the state of Louisiana. When Hurricanes Katrina and Rita struck the Gulf Coast last summer, the state's population dramatically shifted from the region, raising numerous questions regarding healthcare services and resources. The Bureau relied on MapInfo technology to survey and visually represent healthcare data, realizing that location intelligence technology could enable it to visually assess and analyze the status of the department's employees, healthcare facilities and providers.
The Bureau was able to generate maps identifying where healthcare employees had relocated to, as well as where they moved from, helping to administer aid where residents needed it the most. "In the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the Bureau was tasked with comparing healthcare facilities with the new altered populations, and MapInfo played a key role in illustrating which facilities were functional, partially functional or destroyed," said Jonathan Chapman, Health Information Services, the Bureau of Primary Care and Rural Health. "In addition to providing excellent customer service and support, MapInfo has provided the Bureau with the tools to tackle additional projects, such as mapping New Orleans flood zones by neighborhood and overlaying this information with existing healthcare facilities. We look forward to exploring additional capabilities of MapInfo solutions that will help accelerate healthcare processes and communications as the recovery process continues throughout the state."
