GIS enables many different types of analysis that can aid administration, management and planning of child welfare services. Some of the applications and benefits include the ability to:
- Produce clear and useful information to support effective management decisions. For example, GIS can be used to create map-based inventory of services or other information of interest. Also, administrators may be able to see differences in community characteristics or differences in local procedures for providing services.
- Illustrate the flow of clients to and from various community services.
GIS can be used to collect data on the sociodemographic characteristics of neighborhoods served by an agency. The information may be used to help assess whether the current services in a given community are adequate and appropriate for the population. - Predict future needs. A GIS map can be used to monitor trends and to forecast service demand changes as result of policy changes. This knowledge may also help with efforts to allocate funds by providing visually appealing evidence of need for resources.
