| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems. Geography. Vol. II |
| Publisher | Eolss Publishers |
| Pages | 140-157 |
| Number of pages | 18 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9781848269613 |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Jan 2007 |
Abstract
Medical geography is well recognized as a sub-discipline within geography. Its traditional focus is on the geography of diseases and medical resources. In recent years, medical geography has been recast as health geography where the new emphasis is on the geography of health and health care. In this article. we review the major themes of medical and health geography. Within the section on medical geography, the emphasis is placed on the role that regional variation, cultural ecology and spatial modeling play in examining the geography of disease and the geography of medical resources. In the section on health geography, the emphasis is on the recasting of medical geography as health geography. In recasting medical geography as health geography, the linkages between health and the environment: health and place; and health, health care and public policy. The penultimate section of the article is devoted to methodological developments in medical geography. It emphasizes the growing importance of geographical information systems, spatial statistics, telehealth and qualitative methods.