Position Overview:
The Epidemiologist is a health professional responsible for coordinating testing activities for cases and contacts of COVID-19 within a region. Serves as coordinator of COVID-10 testing efforts within a region, providing oversight and response to COVID-19 testing requests and ensuring testing results are relayed back to case investigators, contact tracers, ordering providers, and patients. Advises on the technical aspects of testing, troubleshoots challenges, and identifies solutions. Tracks progress of testing requests and tests conducted within the region and identifies issues/barriers to testing. Conducts quality assurance of testing data and ensures accuracy of testing data for region. Communicates with local health districts to identify and resolve barriers to COVID-19 testing efforts. Coordinates with district, regional, and central office staff engaged in the pandemic response, reporting data on testing activities as requested and conferring with investigators and leadership about challenging disease testing situations Employee follows established policies, but independent judgement and actions based on a solid foundation of knowledge and experience will also need to be applied.
Typical Core Duties:
- Coordinates with health districts in assigned region and works with case investigators and contact tracers to facilitate testing based upon needs of each health district.
- Serves as subject matter expert, interpreting policies and guidelines and ensuring testing activities are conducted in accordance with standardized practices.
- Coordinates the activities of staff to ensure all aspects of the program are addressed in a timely and complete way.
- Reviews data to quantify productivity, timeliness, and compliance of with testing guidelines.
- Communicates with others who are responsible for different aspects of the pandemic response to ensure seamless integration of activities.
- Provides scientifically accurate information about COVID-19 testing to community.
- Ensures data produced by work unit is accurate and reported to supervisors and leadership upon request.
- Ensures all procedures are followed by staff.
- Coordinates staff to ensure the community is protected.
- In cooperation with local health districts, works with staff on a daily basis, works extensively with agency and community partners, provides technical assistance and consultation, oversees implementation of COVID-19 grant objectives, data analysis and progress reporting in regards to COVID-19 testing. Consults with supervisor about unusual public health events and challenging situations involving non-compliance or disease risk in community settings.
Requirements:
- Considerable knowledge of the cause, transmission, treatment, and prevention of communicable diseases and other events of public health importance; methods of public health surveillance and case, cluster, and disease outbreak investigations; federal and state laws, regulations, and policies regarding public health and the reporting and control of disease; and biostatistics, computer data analysis and interpretation of results, and data management techniques.
- Knowledge of testing methodologies (e.g., nucleic acid, antibody/antigen, viral culture) and interpretation of test results.
- Demonstrated ability to lead and direct the work of others in a supervisory or project management capacity; establish and maintain effective working relationships; and evaluate progress toward meeting program goals and objectives.
- Ability to collect, analyze, quality assure, interpret, and present statistical data; and communicate effectively orally and in writing with health care professionals and the general public.
Typical Preferred Qualifications:
- Master of Public Health or related field preferred.
- Considerable experience in epidemiology, public health, or a related area.
- Experience working with public health data systems.
- Knowledge of COVID-19 and the management of the public health response to emerging infections preferred.
- Understanding of the medical terms and principles of exposure, infection, infectious period, potentially infectious interactions, symptoms of disease, pre-symptomatic and asymptomatic infection.