GIS : Learn Mapping Diseases & Plan Health Services by QGIS

Name: GIS : Learn Mapping Diseases & Plan Health Services by QGIS
Rating: 4.3 (42 reviews)

Gain essential GIS skills for health professionals to make data-driven decisions in epidemiology and health planning.

Created bySumal Nandasena. MD

Last updated 5/2025

English

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What you'll learn

Application of GIS in Health research, planing and epidemiology.
Students will able to develop skills and capabilities to use GIS in health planning, epidemiology and research work in community health.
Student will able to work with GPS locations
Student will able to familiarise with features in Google Earth Pro

Course content

5 sections • 41 lectures • 6h 48m total length

Introduction to the training8:10
Health professionals need to map and visualise their existing or collected data for appropriate analysis, interpretation and decision making. Newer technologies such as Global Positioning System (GPS) and Geographic Information System (GIS) permit geographical data capturing, managing, analysing, and displaying in much efficient and accurate manner. GPS allows to obtain the exact location (i.e. coordinates) while GIS is useful for observing longitudinal trends. GIS technology has broad applications in natural and social sciences, humanities, environmental studies, engineering, management and health. GIS can be efficiently used in population health specifically in epidemiology in many occasions such as identifying population at risk, health planning and targeting interventions, linking data, forecasting epidemics, monitoring disease patterns and interventions over time, determining geographical distribution and variation of disease (prevalence and incidence), etc.
This course introduces the concepts and components of a geographic information system (GIS). It also teaches the essential skills of developing maps through use of GIS software package.
By completing this course, students will able to develop skills and capabilities to use GIS in health planning, epidemiology and research work in community health.

Basic concepts of Geographical Information Systems5:28
GIS Epidemiology and Public Health20:59
Basic concepts of Global Positioning Systems3:21
Explore how the global positioning system uses gps receivers and satellite signals to determine exact locations, expressing coordinates as longitudes and latitudes with accuracy.
Importance and challenges of GIS in health6:36
Data types in GIS4:52
Coordinate systems in GIS4:22

Work with open source GIS software3:19
Explore open source GIS software such as QGIS, GRASS GIS, ILWIS, SAGA GIS, and Whitebox GAT, using plugins for data management, digitizing, image processing, remote sensing, and visualization.
Download and install QGIS software8:32
Familiar with QGIS software9:19
Learn the QGIS interface, including panels, toolbars, and working area, then load boundary maps via the data source manager and browse button, and review layer attributes.
Download digital maps (i.e., shapefiles) of your interest4:56

Data visualization by maps33:55
This lecture explain the techniques of data visualisation using QGIS software. The data and digital maps on the practical to be done in this lecture can be downloaded below. You need to unzip the digital maps and need to open through only the QGIS software. Necessary instructions are given in lecture 8 and lecture 9.
Selection of an area of map layer and developing a new map22:02
Learn to select districts in QGIS, build a Sri Lanka map with the Western Province districts, classify nutrition levels with graduated colors, and export a landscape map.
Inverse Selection Feature (i.e., Inverse Selection Tool)5:38
This video demonstrates how to use the inverse selection tool in QGIS—a powerful technique for selecting all features except those currently selected. In public health mapping and epidemiological studies, inverse selection is useful for:
Excluding specific geographic areas (e.g., outbreak zones)
Analyzing surrounding or unaffected regions
Refining data subsets during spatial queries or layer editing
The video walks through a practical example using shapefiles, showing how to:
Select features by location or attribute,
Apply inverse selection from the selection toolbar,
Export or work with the resulting subset.
This skill is handy for health GIS analysts working with surveillance zones, buffer areas, or differential mapping strategies.
Developing Contagious USA map with labelling states20:53
Create a contiguous United States map in QGIS by selecting states and the District of Columbia, labeling each state, excluding Alaska and Hawaii, and exporting the map as an image.
Obtain GPS locations from Google Earth Pro9:53
Learn to obtain gps locations with google earth pro for geospatial analysis in qgis, including navigating to places, capturing longitude and latitude, and organizing location data for mapping diseases.
Plotting of GPS locations on QGIS software, which obtained from Google Earth Pro9:04
Understanding Plugins in QGIS3:56
Creating buffer zones using GPS locations obtained by Goggle Earth Pro4:56
Creating polygons using Google Earth Pro11:41
Dissolve several polygons and develop a new polygon10:27
Merging Polygones4:11
Merging Polygones with additional information12:49
Unmerging polygones (previously merged)16:36
Clipping a vector layer using polygons9:48
Clip the two-kilometer buffers around immunization clinics to the administrative area, merge the resulting buffers into a single polygon, and visualize with OpenStreetMap in QGIS.
Creating buffer zones in both sides of a line feature in a vector4:07
Create two kilometer buffers on both sides of a line feature to map proximity to roads and railroad tracks for health service planning and disease mapping.
Merge a excel table with an attributable table in QGIS14:16
Creation of Heat Maps8:31
This session describes the techniques of developing a simple heat map based on a hypothetical data set.
Create Random numbers with in a polygon21:19
Learn to create random points in polygons with QGIS for epidemiological visualization and field sampling. Apply equal and proportionate sampling, calculate sample sizes by population, and generate points within polygons.
Edit Attribute Tables - Session 117:24
Learn to organize and edit shapefile attribute tables in QGIS by adding or deleting columns and rows, editing cell values, and preparing readable data for Colombo district polygons.
Edit Attribute Tables - Session 2 (Refactor Fields)20:03
Example: Merge an excel table with an attributable table and develop a map0:29

Creating buffer zones in Goggle Earth Pro5:06
Methods of obtaining GPS Coordinates6:18
Obtaining GPS location from mobile phone/GPS devices6:52
Obtain GPS locations by Google My Maps8:11
Learn how to obtain GPS coordinates with Google My Maps, create a map with health institutes, add markers, and export data as KML or CSV for use in QGIS.
Moving point feature to another location in QGIS6:31
Obtain coordinates of points features in a shape file layer (in QGIS)5:59
Add points (i.e., point features) to a already developed point layer6:54
Add a new point feature to an existing point layer in QGIS, enable editing, place the point accurately on the map, and save or export the updated layer.
Mapping GPS locations in QGIS7:03
Map GPS locations in QGIS by importing coordinates from GPS receivers or mobile devices, organizing them as longitude (x) and latitude (y), and exporting to CSV or shapefile.
Map coordinates directly in a shape file13:40

Requirements

No, Good for beginners

Description

Do you want to learn how to map diseases, analyse health data, and contribute to life-saving public health decisions?

This course is your practical guide to Health GIS—designed specifically for public health professionals, medical officers, epidemiologists, students, and development practitioners. Using QGIS, a free and open-source platform, you’ll master the skills to explore spatial data, visualise health trends, and support real-world public health interventions.

From historical maps like John Snow’s cholera outbreak to modern applications in COVID-19, malaria, and healthcare access, this course brings spatial thinking into the health sector like never before.

What You’ll Learn

The fundamentals of GIS and spatial thinking in public health
How to install and use QGIS software
Creating and managing shapefiles and attribute tables
Mapping disease patterns with real epidemiological data
Performing spatial analyses: buffering, hotspots, accessibility
Building thematic maps for health service planning
Applying GIS in outbreak investigation and policy decisions
Case studies from global and Sri Lankan contexts

Who This Course Is For

Public health officers, epidemiologists, and disease surveillance staff
Health planners and NGO workers in health & development sectors
Students and researchers in public health, global health, or GIS
Anyone interested in using maps and spatial analysis to improve lives

What You’ll Get

4+ hours of on-demand video
Downloadable datasets and exercise files
Practical assignments using real health data
Certificate of completion
Lifetime access and updates
Direct support via the Q&A forum

Who this course is for:

Want to make sense of public health data, map disease outbreaks, and drive real-world impact using spatial tools? In this hands-on course, you’ll gain the practical GIS skills needed to tackle today's most pressing health challenges. Whether you're working in health planning, epidemiology, or data analysis, this course will show you how to use QGIS to map diseases, visualize health services, and inform life-saving decisions. No prior GIS experience required—just curiosity and a commitment to improving health systems.
Basic computer literacy No prior GIS knowledge required (you’ll learn everything from scratch) Free software (QGIS will be used throughout the course)

GIS : Learn Mapping Diseases & Plan Health Services by QGIS

What you'll learn

Explore related topics

Course content

Introduction to the training programme1 lecture • 8min

Basic concepts of GIS and GPS6 lectures • 46min

Work with open source GIS software4 lectures • 26min

Hands on experience on mapping techniques with QGIS software21 lectures • 4hr 22min

Hands on experience on GPS coordinates9 lectures • 1hr 7min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: