Epidemiologist II – Analytics and Informatics

Public Health – Seattle & King County is recruiting for a Career Service Epidemiologist II to join its Analytics and Informatics Branch. This position will lead our Respiratory Virus Hospitalization Surveillance Network (RESP-NET) activities, which conducts population-based surveillance for laboratory-confirmed hospitalizations associated with COVID-19, influenza, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) among children and adults. 

Our Analytics & Informatics (A&I) branch collects, manages, analyzes and interprets the Department’s communicable disease and immunization data, including COVID-19 and other respiratory viruses, general communicable diseases (e.g., vaccine preventable diseases, enterics, foodborne illness, zoonotics, healthcare associated infections), acute and chronic hepatitis, and emerging diseases. The A&I branch is a cohesive team of epidemiologists and informatics specialists dedicated to providing data to support public health decision-making. This position would fit within the surveillance team to help improve respiratory hospitalization surveillance and would be critical in informing seasonal respiratory guidance. 

Commitment To Equity and Social Justice
Named after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., one of the most influential civil rights leaders in our nation's history, King County is a vibrant international community with residents that represent countries from around the world. It is a region with increasing diversity that cherishes the traditions of many cultures.
 
The county government has a deep commitment to equity and social justice and advancing practices, strategies, and policies that promote fairness, justice, and opportunity for all – in our workplaces and our communities. With this commitment, King County has adopted a pro-equity agenda to advance regional change and ensure that residents from all communities are incorporated into our emergency planning and public outreach efforts.
 
We recognize that structural racism consists of principles and practices that cause and justify an inequitable distribution of rights, opportunities, and experiences across racial groups. Since declaring Racism is a Public Health Crisis in June 2020, King County and Public Health committed to being intentionally anti-racist and accountable to Black, Indigenous and People of Color communities.
 
To learn more, please visit http://www.kingcounty.gov/elected/executive/equity-social-justice.aspx

Data Management, Quality Assurance, and Analysis 

• Manage all data associated with Public Health – Seattle & King County’s RESP-NET activities 
• Create and troubleshoot R scripts for automating data management
•  Implement and oversee data quality assurance measures to ensure that data is as complete as possible with minimal errors 
• Analyze RESP-NET data and provide summary reports including data visualizations for the Communicable Disease Epidemiology and Immunization section leadership, hospital and laboratory partners, Washington State Department of Health, and the general public 
• Collaborate with partners to advance racial equity through effective utilization of RESP-NET data, including improving accuracy and completeness of race/ethnicity fields, establishing best practices for incorporating race and ethnicity in public health data analyses, and implementing strategies to address disparities in health outcomes

• Supervise Disease Research & Intervention Specialists who will be reviewing records to validate RESP-NET cases and extracting data from electronic medical records for case reporting forms
• Foster collaboration and productive working relationships with external partners (hospitals and laboratories in King County, other local health jurisdictions in Washington State, and the Washington State Department of Health)
• Cultivate a positive and inclusive team culture that fosters collaboration, creativity, innovation, and continuous improvement
• Oversee the training and mentoring of staff, providing technical oversight and assistance as needed
• Proactively manage and resolve any conflicts within the team or with partners to ensure successful interactions and outcomes
• Conduct regular performance evaluations, provide constructive feedback, and address performance issue to ensure cohesive team dynamics and successful outcomes

Required:

• Master's degree in epidemiology or related field OR any equivalent combination of experience and education which provides the applicant with the skills, knowledge and abilities required to perform the work. 
• Experience leading communicable disease surveillance and epidemiology activities 
• Experience producing disease surveillance reports for diverse audiences (including scientific publications, presentations, infographics) 
• Experience communicating the assumptions, conclusions, strengths and limitations of data sources 
• Experience manipulating and analyzing data using R (for example: data cleaning, transformation, aggregation, and modeling) 
• Experience implementing and overseeing data quality assurance measures, including conducting thorough assessments and developing strategies for continuous improvement 
• Experience providing effective leadership for a team by setting clear goals, priorities, and expectations for team members 
• Experience incorporating equity and social justice principles and practices into work projects/programs; understanding of the effect of place-, race- and policy & systems inequities on communities and populations

• Experience analyzing and reporting on respiratory virus (COVID-19, influenza, and respiratory syncytial virus) data 
• Experience designing written communications and data visualizations taking into account accessibility considerations
• Experience creating data collection tools, such as disease reporting forms and surveys
• Experience conducting deterministic and probabilistic record linkage across databases 
• Experience using data from electronic medical records to complete case report forms 
• Fostering team building, conflict resolution, and establishing a positive and inclusive team culture that encourages collaboration, creativity, innovation, and continuous improvement
• Experience hiring, training, mentoring, and providing technical oversight, supervision, and assistance to staff; and evaluating and providing regular constructive feedback on employee performance
• Experience planning, organizing, and managing multiple ongoing projects in a dynamic environment, effectively navigating shifting priorities, time constraints, and budget limitations.
• Experience fostering collaborative relationships with external partners 

Forbes named King County as one of Washington State's best employers.

Together, with leadership and our employees, we're changing the way government delivers service and winning national recognition as a model of excellence. Are you ready to make a difference? Come join the team dedicated to serving one of the nation's best places to live, work and play.

Guided by our "True North", we are making King County a welcoming community where every person can thrive. We value diversity, inclusion and belonging in our workplace and workforce. To reach this goal we are committed to workforce equity. Equitable recruiting, support, and retention is how we will obtain the highest quality workforce in our region; a workforce that shares and will help advance our guiding principles - we are one team; we solve problems; we focus on the customer; we drive for results; we are racially just; we respect all people; we lead the way; and we are responsible stewards. We encourage people of all backgrounds and identities to apply, including Native American and people of color, immigrants, refugees, women, LGBTQ+, people living with disabilities, and veterans.

King County is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Employer

No person is unlawfully excluded from employment opportunities based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation and pregnancy), age, genetic information, disability, veteran status, or other protected class. Our EEO policy applies to all employment actions, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, selection for training, promotion, transfer, demotion, layoff, termination, rates of pay or other forms of compensation.

To Apply

If you are interested in pursuing this position, please follow the application instructions carefully. If you need this announcement in an alternate language or format, would like to request accommodation or assistance in the application or assessment process or if you have questions please contact the recruiter listed on this job announcement.

• NeoGov Job Application (The responses on your job application should be thorough and complete and will be used in the screening process)
• Supplemental Questions (The responses to the supplemental questions should be thorough and complete and will be used in the screening process)
• Resume
• Example report (See the supplemental questions for details on what type of example report to include)
• R code sample (See the supplemental questions for details on what type of R code sample to include)

• The selection process may include evaluation of application materials and supplemental questions, interviewing, and testing. You must completely fill out the application with your relevant education and work experience.
• The selected candidate must be able to pass a thorough background investigation, but findings may not necessarily disqualify an applicant for employment.
• For more information on our selection process, please refer to www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/jobs/hiring. For tips on interviewing, please visit https://www.kingcounty.gov/~/media/audience/employees/learning-and-development/Interview_Tips.ashx?la=en. 
• Employees are required to protect the privacy and security of protected health information as defined in State and Federal Law.
• Public Health relies on office automation (Microsoft Office) and web-based enabled tools, therefore candidates must be proficient and comfortable with computer use to perform functions associated with on-going work.
• Employees are required to adhere to OSHA/WISHA guidelines including but not limited to completing their mandatory trainings on time and obtaining required immunizations.
• Regular and reliable attendance, effective communication skills, and development of effective working relationships are requirements of all Public Health positions.
• When Public Health responds to an emergency, and in accordance with relevant CBA language and/or KC policy and procedures, we may assign duties outside your regular job description. This may involve responding at any time, including nights and weekends, with possible deployment to locations other than the department. 
• If you need a disability accommodation in the application or testing process, please call the contact number listed on the job announcement.