The National Library of Medicine has created the resource called “Community Health Maps: Information on Low Cost Mapping Tools for Community-based Organizations“. If you are interested in the usefulness of data mapping in public health, but have concerns about high cost or complex technology, check out this blog.

Community Health Maps contains a mixture of mapping apps and reviews, best practices, and experiences of folks who have successfully used mapping technologies in their work in public health. The blog is intended to help community organizations identify and apply low-cost and easy-to-use online mapping tools.

Examples of what you can find on the Community Health Maps blog include:

• A guide for using iForm for Field Data Collection. iForm is an app that can be used on iPads, iPhones and Android devices. Using iForm and iFormBuilder, you can go to different locations, gather data, and view it in tabular or map format.
• A review of CartoDB, an online cloud based platform for storing and visualizing spatial data.
• A two-part article on the accuracy of the GPS in Smartphones. Will the use of your phone’s GPS be sufficient for your project?