IN-IDOH-HAI Epidemiologist II

Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI) Epidemiologist II

The Healthcare-Associated Infections and Antimicrobial Resistance (HAI/AR) Program within the Epidemiology and Resource Center (ERC) at the Indiana Department of Health (IDOH) is accepting applications for a Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI) Epidemiologist II.

Purpose of Position/Summary:
The HAI Epidemiologist II serves as an Indiana state contractor in the ERC at the IDOH. The purpose of this position is to minimize morbidity and mortality associated with healthcare associated infections among Indiana residents by conducting a broad and complex range of investigative and analytical epidemiologic activities. The scope of this position includes, but is not limited to: surveillance of and outbreak response for suspected healthcare associated outbreaks, healthcare-associated Legionnaires disease (HA-LD), non-tuberculosis mycobacteria (NTM), Melioidosis, and Glanders. The HAI Epidemiologist II will build and maintain relationships with outpatient facilities and will serve as subject matter experts on medical product contamination, injection safety, and drug compounding.

Essential Duties/Responsibilities:
Maintain current subject matter knowledge of the epidemiology and biology of healthcare associated
infections;
Provide epidemiologic consultation and technical assistance to local health departments, health care providers, and the general public with respect to healthcare associated infections;
Conduct routine epidemiologic surveillance for healthcare associated infections;
Lead or coordinate epidemiologic investigations of individual cases and/or outbreaks of healthcare associated infections;
Design and conduct applied epidemiologic studies of healthcare associated infections;
Manage and analyze data collected through routine surveillance, public health investigations, and applied epidemiologic studies;
Prepare and disseminate written and oral reports and presentations that communicate necessary information to internal and external partners;
Conduct educational presentations and/or trainings for a variety of audiences, including local health departments, health care providers, and the general public;
Engage directly with members of the public at health fairs and other outreach events;
Participate in writing and reporting for grants and other funding proposals;
Serve as an agency spokesperson at the invitation and direction of the IDOH Office of Public Affairs;
Evaluate the impact of legislation or policy proposals at the invitation and direction of the IDOH Director of Legislative Affairs;
Serve as a backup to the Senior HAI Epidemiologist;
Serve on the ERC Social Media Team and provide social media messaging content on healthcare associated infections;
Be available by phone after business hours 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 3NA days a year, except during periods of approved leave;
Serve on the IDOH Health Monitoring Team for Ebola Virus Disease (EVD);
Conduct landscape analyses as directed by CDC in order to meet SHARP grant requirements;
Perform related duties as assigned.


Job Requirements:
Education:
oMaster s degree in a relevant field (e.g., public health, biological sciences, or social sciences) and = 2 years relevant public health experience OR
oMaster s degree in a non-relevant field and = 4 years public health experience OR
oDoctoral-level degree in epidemiology or other relevant fields OR
oGraduate or professional degree in a health-related field (e.g., RN, MD/DO, DDS/DMD, DVM, PhD, RS) with specific epidemiology training (e.g., MPH degree, CDC Epidemic Intelligence Service, or CSTE Applied Epidemiology Fellowship) OR
oBachelor s degree in a relevant field and = 4 years relevant public health experience OR
oBachelor s degree in a non-relevant field and = 6 years public health experience.
oCurrent employee promotion requirement: Internal candidate should be a high-performing Epidemiologist 1 or other internal role based on demonstrated ability, competency attainment, and/or performance feedback.
Knowledge, skills, and abilities:
oKnowledge of the epidemiology and biology of healthcare associated infections;
oKnowledge of state laws and regulations as well as federal public health guidance documents pertaining to healthcare associated infections;
oSkill in identification of public health problems pertinent to Indiana residents;
oSkill in conducting epidemiologic surveillance activities, including selection and use of appropriate field methods as well as use and evaluation of public health surveillance systems;
oSkill in eliciting relevant information from patients in structured or unstructured telephone interviews;
oSkill in conducting public health investigations of individual cases and/or outbreaks of healthcare associated infections;
oSkill in designing descriptive and analytical epidemiologic investigations, including hypothesis generation;
oSkill in managing large datasets, performing complex data analyses, and identifying key findings;
oSkill in recommending evidence-based interventions and control measures in response to epidemiologic findings;
oSkill in preparing written and oral reports, presentations, and educational materials that communicate necessary information to internal and external partners;
oSkill in applying principles of informatics, including data collection, processing, and analysis, in support of epidemiologic practice
oDemonstrated skill in statistical, analytical, and/or geospatial software (e.g., EpiInfo, SAS, ArcGIS, SQL, SPSS, R, Python, Stata, etc.);
oAbility to identify appropriate laboratory resources and use them appropriately;
oAbility to provide prompt, courteous, and helpful customer service;
oAbility to collaborate with others inside and outside the agency to identify public health problems and form recommendations;
oAbility to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing, using principles of risk communication where appropriate;
oAbility to prioritize tasks efficiently to meet internal and external deadlines;
oAbility to appropriately document work activities and maintain organized records.

Supervisory Responsibilities/Direct Reports:
They may also be responsible for directing and coordinating the work of interns assigned to the program.

Personal Work Relationships:
The incumbent is a part of the HAI-AR Program ERC at IDOH. The incumbent works closely with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the IDOH Laboratories, health care providers, and local health departments. The incumbent is expected to maintain good working relationships with these entities as well as other internal and external partners.

Physical Effort:
The incumbent must be physically able to type on a computer, to communicate via telephone, and to sit and/or stand at a workstation for a 7.5-hour workday.

Working Conditions:
Work is performed in an indoor office setting. Occasional field work and/or overnight travel may be required. The incumbent must be willing to receive immunizations for communicable diseases when necessary and appropriate.

Required/Desired Skills
SkillRequired /DesiredAmountof ExperiencePreferred: Master s degree in a relevant field (e.g., public health, biological sciences, or social sciences) and relevant public health experience.Desired2YearsMinimum educational requirement: bachelor s degree in a relevant field and relevant public health experience.Required4YearsMinimum educational requirement: bachelor s degree in a non-relevant field and public health experience.Required6YearsIncumbent required to work onsite, but may have the opportunity to work a hybrid schedule, which would require a minimum of 2 days in office a week. Required2DaysInterview may be done in-person at 2 N. Meridian St. Indianapolis, IN 4NA04 or online via Microsoft Teams. Required1DaysDemonstrated skill with Epi Info, SAS, ArcGIS, SQL, SPSS, R, Python, Stata, etc.Nice to have1YearsSkill in conducting public health investigations.Nice to have1YearsSkill in preparing written and oral reports, presentations, and educational materials that communicate information to internal and external partners.Nice to have1YearsSkill in managing large datasets, performing complex data analyses, and identifying key findings.Nice to have1Years
Questions
No.QuestionQuestion1Absences greater than two weeks MUST be approved by CAI management in advance, and contact information must be provided to CAI so that the resource can be reached during his or her absence. The Client has the right to dismiss the resource if he or she does not return to work by the agreed upon date. Do you accept this requirement?Question2Please list candidate's email address.Question3Please list the city and state where candidate currently resides.Question4Candidate must be paid NA if selected for engagement. The provider markup for this position is 29%. Do you accept this requirement?Question5The candidate is required to work Monday to Friday, approximately 8am to 4:30pm, for a total of 37.5 hours per week.Question6Funding for this position is available for two years, this is a one year contact that is expected to renew at the beginning of year two contingent upon performance review. This position is not expected to transition to a state position, it will remain a contract position.