Data Science and Informatics Specialist 2 (DSIS2/SPI)

State of Washington•Thurston County – Olympia, WA

5d•Hybrid

About The Position

This position monitors and analyzes data for federal reporting on the use of behavioral health resources and needs across Washington. This Data Science and Informatics Specialist utilizes SAS, R, SQL, Tableau, and Power BI for reporting and analysis and ensures the accuracy and integrity of incoming data. All HCA employees will apply an equity lens to their work, which may include but is not limited to all analyses of core business and processes. The DATA (Data Acquisition, Transformation and Analytics) team of the Health Care Authority (HCA), within the Strategy, Policy, and Innovation (SPI) division, is responsible for leading agency data strategy; and leading the implementation, maintenance, and enhancement of the data management, analytics and reporting systems that inform agency leadership in support of HCA’s goals, as well as for monitoring program performance to ensure accountability and alignment with agency activities. This position extracts knowledge from structured and unstructured health care data with a focus on creating advanced data analytics, applying statistical techniques, and developing data visualizations in support of SAMHSA Substance Abuse and Mental Health Block Grants; SAMHSA Inventory of Treatment Facilities, and behavioral health programs. This position is eligible to telework and is typically not required to report on-site. The default assigned work location of all Health Care Authority (HCA) positions – both on-site and telework eligible positions – is within the State of Washington. This position reports to Olympia, WA. Frequency of onsite work will vary based on business and operational needs. All agency employees are required to report on-site in Olympia on their first and last days of employment to pick up and return state-issued equipment, regardless of telework status or location.

Requirements

Master's degree in informatics, data science, mathematics, computer science, statistics, biostatistics, epidemiology, or related technical or quantitative field, and Two (2) years of experience working with complex health care, behavioral health, and/or public health analytics, data visualization software and R, SAS, SQL, M code and/or Python programming.
Bachelor's degree in informatics, data science, mathematics, computer science, statistics, biostatistics, epidemiology, or related technical or quantitative field, Two (2) years of professional experience performing data science or informatics data work, and Two (2) years of experience working with complex health care, behavioral health, and/or public health analytics, data visualization software and R, SAS, SQL, M code and/or Python programming.
Associate degree in informatics, data science, mathematics, computer science, statistics, biostatistics, epidemiology, or related technical or quantitative field, Four (4) years of professional experience performing data science or informatics data work, and Two (2) years of experience working with complex health care, behavioral health, and/or public health analytics, data visualization software and R, SAS, SQL, M code and/or Python programming.
Six (6) years of professional experience performing data science or informatics data work and Two (2) years of experience working with complex health care, behavioral health, and/or public health analytics, data visualization software and R, SAS, SQL, M code and/or Python programming.
The ability to take action to learn and grow.
The ability to take action to meet the needs of others.
Strong analytical skills with the ability to collect, organize, analyze, and disseminate significant amounts of information with attention to detail and accuracy.

Nice To Haves

Advanced professional experience using R or SAS to write data code and query scripts.
Advanced professional experience using SQL or Python to write data code and query scripts.
Advanced experience working with large and complex data sets and combining data from multiple sources.
Demonstrated knowledge of behavioral health primary prevention, treatment, and recovery services delivery or clinical settings.
Knowledge of medical and/or pharmacy coding such as ICD-10, Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) and Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) codes; health care business and systems; research methods; advanced statistical theory and techniques.
Experience with data visualization using Power BI, Tableau and other similar visualization tools.
Professional data quality assurance experience identifying and understanding data quality and completeness issues.
Professional experience communicating complex technical information to both technical and non-technical audiences.
Knowledge of the structure and operations of behavioral health systems at the local, state and national levels.
Comfortable interacting with staff members at all levels of the agency; high level of workload management including organization and prioritization of tasks; ability to work effectively in a multi-disciplinary team; excellent written and verbal communication skills.
Demonstrated planning, critical thinking/analytical skills, and commitment to collaborative teamwork.
Proficiency in problem identification, ability to view issues from multiple perspectives, and generate a variety of solutions.
Oral communication skills facilitating small group meetings, written communication including concisely worded and professional e-mail communication, short, concise memoranda, flow diagrams, logic models, graphics and other visualizations.

Responsibilities

Use health care claims and supplementary data sources to design and develop health care reporting and visualizations for behavioral health programs and populations to help the agency make data-driven decisions.
Collaborate with internal partners to acquire data, maintain, and update datasets in support of federal reporting requirements and behavioral health service availability assessments.
Develop data expertise on the regional distribution of behavioral health facilities.
Conduct quantitative analysis, reports, and interactive dashboards using Power BI or Tableau to provide insights to leadership.
Develop analytic deliverables for internal and external requestors, HCA website, and legislative reports.
Monitor, identify and understand data quality and completeness issues that impact business needs.
Write data code/query scripts to create analytic datasets and generate data products from data sources using programming languages such as R, SAS, SQL, M code and/or Python.
Develop algorithms, build data models, and automate data processing tasks.
Combine multiple data formats and sources such as health care claims, medical records, surveillance data, surveys, and/or pharmacy data to meet analytic project requirements.
Apply medical coding such as ICD-10, Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) and Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) codes to analyze health care data.
As directed, support management and information technology staff to monitor, identify, and understand data quality and completeness issues.