How do we use geographic information systems (gis) as a response to drug consumption and abuse

摘要

Being, lately, one of the most important health issues, substance use and abuse has captured the attention of many researchers in the field. Nowadays, researchers mostly focus on how peoples'everyday environments and the political and cultural contexts in which they live in influence the prevalence and consequences of substance abuse.Geographers can contribute to this type of research on substance use and abuse by making connections between place environments and health and by using geographic tools in order to explore these associations. The geographic tools and methods have been centered around geographic information systems (GIS).The present paper approaches the discussion on how place concepts and geographic information systems tools have been used in understanding health and it suggests avenues of explorations for research on substance abuse. The concept of place provides a background for understanding the way in which substance abuse bahaviors, prevention and treatment relate to place environments from the personal scale to the global scale.