Abstract
Drawing upon national experiences regarding environmental meta-information and a WHO consultation on a European Metadatabase on Environmental and Health Information Sources (Munich, 8–10 May 1989), the role and elements of a meta-information system in relation to an envisaged European health and environment geographical information system are described. Three essential elements are identified: (i) absolute restriction to meta-information, that is: referral service only; (ii) a human interface; computers are not essential; (iii) a good thesaurus. In addition, the potential for completing national meta-information systems through the forming of an international network is briefly discussed.
The views expressed in this chapter are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policies of the National Institute of Public Health and Environmental Protection or the views of other staff members of the Institute.
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© 1995 Kluwer Academic Publishers
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Bakkes, J.A. (1995). Meta-Information Systems for Environment and Health. In: De Lepper, M.J.C., Scholten, H.J., Stern, R.M. (eds) The Added Value of Geographical Information Systems in Public and Environmental Health. The GeoJournal Library, vol 24. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-585-31560-7_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-585-31560-7_3
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