ABSTRACT
The use of geographic information systems (GIS) within health services research offers exciting potentials. This chapter examines the intersection of GIS and health services research (HSR). Our goals are twofold: (1) to compile and summarize existing literature on GIS and HSR, and (2) to assess the degree that HSR utilizes the full potential of GIS. Readers might also want to consult other reviews that focus on health care planning, marketing, and delivery (Barnes and Peck, 1994), geomedical (Albert, 1994; Albert et al., 1995; Albert, 1997a; Croner et al., 1996), public and environmental health (Scholten and de Lepper, 1991; Briggs and Elliott, 1995), and epidemiological (Glass et al., 1993; Mott et al., 1995; Pan American Health Organization, 1996) applications of geographic information systems.
