Influenza Surveillance Epidemiologist III

TX-HHSC-DSHS-DFPS•Austin, TX

28d

About The Position

DSHS is committed to hiring skilled and dedicated individuals who share a passion for public health to pursue our vision of A Healthy Texas. If you are looking to make an impact and tackle new challenges, we encourage you to consider a career with us. Employee Benefits: DSHS offers insurance coverage and other benefits available through the State of Texas Group Benefits Plan administered by the Employee Retirement System of Texas (ERS). To learn more about all the benefits available to you as a DSHS employee and other DSHS opportunities for early career pathways, visit the DSHS Careers Page. Review our Top 10 Tips for Success when Applying to State of Texas Jobs. Under the general supervision of the Emerging and Acute Infectious Disease Manager, the Influenza Epidemiologist III works on highly complex assignments requiring epidemiologic design and implementation of data collection, analysis, and reporting related to influenza and respiratory infectious diseases. Primary duties of the position include development and implementation of surveillance databases; design of fieldwork protocols and epidemiologic studies; conducting statistical analyses of health outcome data; and developing reports containing findings, their interpretation and recommendations for influenza and respiratory infectious diseases; design of surveillance projects, and outbreak investigations of infectious invasive and respiratory diseases. Consults with physicians, healthcare facilities, state and national organizations, public health officials, and the public regarding the epidemiology of influenza and respiratory infectious diseases. Develops protocols for program investigations in high profile settings and media-sensitive environments. Prepares oral and written presentations describing the outcomes of epidemiologic investigations or surveillance findings. Coordinates with novel coronavirus, influenza, and COVID-19 subject matter experts for planning, surveillance, and response. Collaborates with other Unit staff in the planning, development, and implementation of field epidemiologic studies. Uses current data analysis and visualization platforms for the analysis, evaluation, interpretation, and display of data. Duties performed under limited supervision with extensive latitude for use of initiative and independent judgment.

Requirements

Knowledge of contemporary principles of epidemiology
Knowledge of biostatistics and Access, Epi Info, and Excel database management
Knowledge of the rules and regulations governing the control of notifiable conditions
Knowledge of database management
Knowledge of the natural history and epidemiology of common infectious diseases, especially influenza
Knowledge of the surveillance methods for common infectious diseases, especially influenza
Knowledge of evidence-based interventions and control measures in response to epidemiologic findings
Ability to manage intervention projects and facilitate workgroups
Ability to train and/or supervise others
Ability to plan, conduct, and report on epidemiologic investigations
Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing and prepare grant applications and decision packages
Ability to present statistical and technical data in a clear and concise format
Ability to work effectively with regional and local health department personnel, private practice physicians, and hospital staff
Ability to organize and maintain complex records and files
Ability to initiate and manage multiple projects and deadlines
Ability to function as a team member and collaborate with internal and external partners
Ability to devise and develop solutions
Skills in utilizing Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
Skill in conducting disease outbreak investigations
Skill using statistical software packages
Master’s degree from a U.S. accredited college or university (or a foreign degree determined to be equivalent by an acceptable education evaluator) with a focus in epidemiology with 3 or more years of public health experience.
Professional doctoral degree (e.g., MD/DO, DDS/DMD/DVM) or doctoral degree with a focus in epidemiology from a U.S. accredited college or university (or a foreign degree determined to be equivalent by an acceptable education evaluator) with 2 or more years of public health experience.

Responsibilities

Directs surveillance activities for influenza and other infectious respiratory diseases as a Subject Matter Expert (SME).
Assists in the design, maintenance, and running of reports using a variety of data sources including National Respiratory and Enteric Virus Surveillance System (NRVESS), Influenza-like Illness (ILINet), Texas Syndromic Surveillance (TxS2), Laboratory Response Network (LRN), and regional and local influenza data to inform stakeholders about influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) activity in Texas.
Conducts quality checks and assessments of surveillance data.
Works with the Public Health Informatics & Data Exchange Group to update invasive and respiratory disease pages in the National Electronic Disease Surveillance System.
Establishes, manages, and coordinates syndromic and laboratory surveillance systems and reports on the occurrence of infectious invasive and respiratory diseases as well as other invasive respiratory diseases, including respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) surveillance.
Ensures data entry instructions and procedures for infectious respiratory disease reporting are available.
Prepares disease summary reports using Word, Access, Epi Info, PowerPoint, Tableau, SAS, and/or Excel for distribution to local and regional health departments.
Ensures summary reports on diseases are available on the web site.
Assists in preparation of cooperative agreements.
Provides guidance on infectious respiratory disease surveillance plans for local and regional health departments.
Analyzes and interprets epidemiological data, including laboratory findings.
Creates, maintains, and distributes databases using applications such as Excel, Access, Tableau, SAS and/or Epi Info.
Oversees implementation and execution of Epidemiological Laboratory Capacity (ELC) grant activities related to influenza.
Initiates, plans, implements, and directs epidemiological studies, surveillance projects, and outbreak investigations for novel influenza, influenza-associated pediatric mortality, and infectious respiratory diseases.
Assembles appropriate epidemiological, laboratory, and medical records resources and collaborates with epidemiology staff to address disease outbreak investigations or epidemiologic surveillance projects.
Creates and updates forms, and other tools used for case investigations.
Coordinates establishment and implementation of activities to improve outbreak response.
Participates in respiratory disease outbreak investigations, such as influenza outbreaks, and studies by designing and modifying questionnaires or report forms, performing data analysis using statistical programs, and assisting with recommendations for control measures.
Provides epidemiologic consultations to medical and public health professionals on influenza and infectious respiratory diseases.
Prepares annual, monthly, and weekly reports and graphic presentations of surveillance and investigation data using EpiInfo, PowerPoint, Word, Excel, Access, LabWare, Tableau, SAS, and NEDSS-based system.
Prepares information via the Emerging and Acute Infectious Disease Unit’s website.
Responds to information requests from the DSHS press office.
Prepares written manuscripts for publication in peer-review journals.
Using PowerPoint and other presentation tools, prepares and conducts oral presentations on infectious disease topics to various audiences, including medical providers, epidemiologists, and health department staff.
Uses Excel, PowerPoint, Word, SAS, Tableau, and/or ArcGIS, to prepare and visualize data to multiple audiences.
Provides information to the public and news media.
Drafts policy statements and guidance documents.
Participates in the screening, interviewing, and selection of team members.
Plans and directs projects for the team, makes sure deadlines are met, and makes assignments to individual team members.
Assists the Group and Unit managers with establishing priorities for the team; then implements them.
Assesses training needs and makes recommendations for training; may provide on-the-job training and assist less experienced staff with the more complex issues and/or situations.
Attends and provides input at meetings pertaining to unit goals, objectives, and activities.
Provides technical assistance to local and regional health departments.
Serves as point of contact for the CDC on issues related to influenza and infectious respiratory disease surveillance and control.
Other duties as assigned include but are not limited to actively participating and/or serving in a supporting role to meet the agency’s obligations for disaster response and/or recovery or State Medical Operations Center (SMOC) activation.
Such participation may require an alternate shift pattern assignment and/or location.

Benefits

DSHS offers insurance coverage and other benefits available through the State of Texas Group Benefits Plan administered by the Employee Retirement System of Texas (ERS).

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