Analyzing New York City's response to H1N1 in high-risk populations through the use of GIS

In the fall of 2009, New York City's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene conducted a citywide vaccination program to mitigate the spread of H1N1 influenza. Decisions regarding where, when and how to distribute the vaccines can significantly impact the outcomes of such a campaign. NYC DOHMH chose a two-fold approach: sending staff and vaccine into elementary schools to vaccinate children, and opening community-based Points of Dispensing (PODs) over five weekends. The purpose of this project was to measure the success of the vaccination program in terms of the geographic distribution of vaccines amongst populations of interest (school-aged children, pregnant women, persons with underlying risk conditions), following the agency's public Point of Dispensing (POD) operations and school-based vaccination program. The first level of analysis involved calculating a “Risk Score” for each of the City's 46 United Hospital Fund neighborhoods, based on the size of populations of interest and their relative risks of H1N1 complications. Citywide risk scores were mapped using GIS, and served as the base map for further analysis. In the second stage of assessment, geographic data from vaccine recipients were overlayed on the base map to visually represent distribution of vaccine, and whether neighborhoods with high risk scores accessed these resources. Through this analysis, emergency planners can work to identify geographic areas that may benefit from greater vaccine distribution, ideal locations to set up future PODs, and neighborhoods that may need more concentrated outreach efforts to increase community participation in a mass vaccination campaign.