Epidemiologist II - COVID Vaccine Planning



Epidemiologist II - COVID Vaccine Planning

Salary

$86,852.69 - $110,090.86 Annually

Location

Seattle, WA

Job Type

Special Duty Assignment or Term Limited Temp (TLT)

Job Number

2020CF12403

Department

DPH - Public Health

Division

Prevention

Opening Date

11/06/2020

Closing Date

12/7/2020 7:52 AM Pacific

FLSA

Non-Exempt

Bargaining Unit

D1 : WSCCCE L21HD-DPH

Summary

Public Health – Seattle and King County values diverse perspectives and life experiences.  The Department encourages people of all backgrounds to apply, including people of color, immigrants, refugees, women, LGBTQ, people with disabilities, and veterans.

COMMITMENT TO EQUITY AND SOCIAL JUSTICE: 
As the only Public Health jurisdiction in the world 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.

We have 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 vulnerable communities are incorporated into our emergency planning and public outreach efforts.
 
The selected candidate will integrate King County's Equity and Social Justice principles into the daily functions of this position.
 
Do the following interest you?
 Vaccination planning and immunization coverage analytics
Coordinating data collection
Conducting data integration
Monitoring and ensuring data integrity
Developing analyses and reports based on complex data systems
Disseminating findings to technical and lay audiences

Public Health – Seattle & King County is seeking to fill an Epidemiologist II position to support the Analytics & Informatics team. This position is a part of the Communicable Disease Epidemiology and Immunization Section (CD-EPI). This position will primarily support COVID vaccination planning and immunization analytics and will analyze data to identify health disparities and guide prioritization of resources for vulnerable populations. This position will also be assigned to support analytics for COVID-19, general communicable diseases (e.g., vaccine-preventable diseases, enterics, foodborne illness, zoonotics, hepatitis), and immunizations when needed.

In accordance with the King County Equity and Social Justice Ordinance and the King County Strategic Plan, the positions support and advance Public Health values for fair and culturally competent service delivery, innovative, effective and efficient application of resources, building a culture of performance and expanding opportunities to seek input, listen and respond to community members.

This posting will remain open until filled. The first consideration will occur for all applications received by 11:59pm on November 19, 2020.

WHO MAY APPLY: This positions is open to external candidates as a Term-Limited Temporary assignment, and open to King County Career Service employees as a Special Duty assignment.  To be considered for a Special Duty, you must be a current King County Career Service employee who has successfully passed probation.
 
WORK LOCATION: The primary work location for this role is the Chinook Building located at 401 5th Ave in Seattle, and may be required to work onsite on occasion. Staff will also be required to telecommute.

TEMPORARY TELECOMMUTING REQUIREMENT:
Some of the work associated with this position will be performed remotely, at least through July 5, 2021 in compliance with King County’s telecommuting mandate.  Employees will be provided with a County issued laptop and must maintain a workspace with an internet connection where they can reliably perform work and remain available and responsive during scheduled work hours.  Employees must reside in WA state and within a reasonable distance to their King County worksite to respond to workplace reporting requirements.  There will be situations where the employee is required to report to a County worksite.  Please note that when an employee conducts work that is likely to bring them in contact with another individual, safety precautions are required by the department in alignment with the Public Health Directive from the Seattle & King County Public Health Officer.

To support employees during this time King County has a robust collection of tools and resources to support working remotely. The individual selected for this opportunity will be joining an innovative and progressive team. King County is doing its part to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and remains committed to reducing our carbon footprint. 

WORK SCHEDULE: Monday through Sunday, 40 hours per week, which may include evenings. This position is subject to the Fair Labor Standards Act and is overtime eligible where time worked exceeds 40 hours per week. At Seattle/King County Public Health we strive to be accessible to those we serve. This position may require flexibility to accommodate different work schedules and work locations. Overtime during evenings and weekends may be required as part of emergency response. The duration of this Special Duty/Term-Limited Temporary position may be less than one year if demands on the program decrease.

Job Duties

Work under the supervision of the Analytics Director and serve as a liaison between the Analytics & Informatics team and the Immunizations Team within the Communicable Disease, Epidemiology and Immunizations Section.

  • Serve as data manager for extracting data from the Washington Immunization Information System data and other surveillance data sets
  • Coordinate data gathering and analyses with internal partners at PHSKC (Immunizations Program, Analytics & Informatics team, Assessment Policy Development and Evaluation Unit), and external partners (including the Washington State Department of Health)
  • Conduct data linkage across data sources
  • Design survey instruments and other data collection tools
  • Respond to data requests from internal and external stakeholders
  • Develop analytic methods to identify and estimate the size and demographic characteristics of priority populations in King County
  • Draft reports and visualizations summarizing data necessary to inform vaccine distribution plans and assess vaccine uptake
  • Coordinate with the Analytics & Informatics team on other vaccination data reporting and management
  • Create internal-facing Tableau dashboards related to vaccination allocation, distribution, and uptake
  • This role will not be supervisory but will lead projects and analyses.

Experience, Qualifications, Knowledge, Skills

  • Master's degree in epidemiology, informatics, biostatistics, 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
  • Proficiency in SAS or R coding skills
  • Experience with Immunization Information Systems or other immunization registry database/system
  • Knowledge of statistical theory, including hypothesis testing, multivariate analysis, trend analysis, regression analysis, sampling techniques, and confidence-interval estimation
  • Ability to interpret data by summarizing assumptions, conclusions, strengths and weaknesses of the data
  • Creating visualizations using Excel, ArcGIS, R, SAS, or Tableau
  • Proficient written, oral, and interpersonal communication skills
  • Demonstrated ability to work well on a team
  • Demonstrated ability to conduct projects within timelines
  • Ability to work independently with minimal direction
  • Excellent problem-solving skills
  • Ability to work well under pressure with multiple competing priorities and deadlines
  • Experience matching/merging different data sets
  • Knowledge of immunization coverage schedules
  • Experience analyzing immunization data and describing immunization coverage

Desired Qualifications 
  • Experience working with survey or census data
  • Experience analyzing longitudinal and relational data
  • Experience conducting time series analysis, geospatial modeling, and regression modeling
  • Experience working in a local or state public health practice setting
  • Experience analyzing data for health disparities

Supplemental Information

Forbes recently 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 your recruiter listed on this job announcement.

APPLICATION PROCESS: 
A complete application packet will consist of the following:

  • NEOGOV/Government Jobs on-line or paper application
  • Cover letter detailing your qualifications
  • CV or resume
  • Sample Materials - as described in the supplemental questions, please submit the following materials with your application. As we would like to evaluate your coding and reporting skills to date, please do notwrite new programs or make modifications to existing ones. If you have concerns about sharing these examples, please send an email to spogosjans@kingcounty.gov.
    • One example (either in R or SAS preferably) that demonstrates your programming skills in data manipulation (e.g., SQL, text string searches, arrays, recoding data values, macros, date/time calculations, applying formats to variables, merging data sets, transposing data, creating output in HTML/PDF/Word, etc.).
    • Preferably an analytic report focusing on immunizations or vaccinations.
You may attach multiple documents if you wish with your application:
  • Copy and paste one or more documents into the text resume section of the application.
  • Attach multiple documents/files in the resume attachment section.

NECESSARY SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:
  • The selected candidate will be required to pass a thorough background investigation and pre-employment physical.
  • Employees are required to protect the privacy and security of protected health information as defined in State and Federal Law.
  • Employees are required to adhere to OSHA/WISHA guidelines including but not limited to completing required training on time.

TIMELINE: Candidates who pass the initial screening (based on their responses to the supplemental questions) will be contacted approximately 2-3 weeks after the application period closes. Eligible candidates will be invited to at least one (and possibly two) interviews. Candidates will generally be notified of a final decision within 1-2 weeks of their interview date.

CONTACT: For questions about the position, contact Sargis Pogosjans, Regional Health Adminstrator at spogosjans@kingcounty.gov. For questions about the application process, contact Catherine Fitzpatrick, HR Analyst at Catherine.fitzpatrick@kingcounty.gov.

UNION AFFILIATION: This position is represented by WSC of County & City Employees, Local 21.

King County offers a highly-competitive compensation and benefits package designed to meet the diverse needs of our employees and support our employees' health and well-being.  Eligible positions receive the following benefits and have access to the following programs:

  • Medical, dental, and vision coverage: King County pays 100% of the premiums for eligible employees and family members
  • Life and disability insurance: employees are provided basic coverage and given the opportunity to purchase additional insurance for both the employee and eligible dependents
  • Retirement: King County employees are eligible to participate in a pension plan through the Washington State Department of Retirement Systems and a 457(b) deferred-compensation plan
  • Transportation program and ORCA transit pass
  • 10 paid holidays each year (plus 2 personal holidays)
  • Generous vacation and paid sick leave
  • Paid parental leave, family and medical leaves, and volunteer leave
  • Flexible Spending Account
  • Wellness programs
  • Onsite gyms and activity centers
  • Employee giving program
  • Employee assistance programs
  • Flexible schedules and telecommuting options, depending on position
  • Training and career development programs
For additional information about employee benefits please visit our Benefits, Payroll, and Retirement Page.

This is a general description of the benefits offered to eligible King County employees, and every effort has been made to ensure its accuracy.  If any information on this document conflicts with the provisions of a collective bargaining agreement (CBA), the CBA prevails.  Also, in the event of any incorrect information in this document, applicable laws, policies, rules, CBAs, or official plan documents will prevail.
 
NOTE:  Benefits for Term Limited Temporary (TLT) or Short Term Temporary (STT) positions, including leave eligibility and/or participation in the pension plan through the Washington State Department of Retirement Systems, will vary based upon the terms and details of the position. Short Term Temporary positions are not eligible for an ORCA transit pass.
 
For inquiries about the specifics of this position, please contact the recruiter identified on this job posting.

01
Do you have intermediate or higher programming skills using SAS or R (e.g., SQL, text string searches, arrays, recoding data values, macros, date/time calculations, applying formats to variables, merging data sets, transposing data, etc.)?
  • Yes
  • No
02
In order for your application to be considered completed, you must attach an example of your programming skills in SAS or R that highlights your skill sets AND an analytic report that focuses on vaccines or immunizations (preferable focus). Do you certify that you attached this?
  • Yes
  • No
03
Do you have experience analyzing immunizations registry data or reporting on immunization coverage?
  • Yes
  • No
04
If you answered yes to the previous question, provide a detailed description of your experience. Include the number of years of experience (beyond coursework) and setting(s) where you applied these skillsets. If you do not have this experience, type n/a.
05
Are you applying to this position as a Priority Placement Program Participant And Is this position the same or lower percentage of full-time when compared to the position held at the point of the notification of layoff AND Do you possess the skills and abilities to qualify for this position?
  • Yes, I was given a layoff notice from my role at King County AND I am within two years of the effective date of my layoff. AND The position I was laid off from was the same or a higher percentage of FT status when compared to this one.
  • No.
06
If you answered yes to the question above and you are applying for this position as a Priority Placement Participant, to be considered, you must provide the following three pieces of information in the space provided: 1. The title you held when you received your layoff notice 2. The department you worked in 3. The effective date of your layoff

Required Question

Agency
King County
Address
King Street Center
201 South Jackson Street
Seattle, Washington, 98104
Phone
206-477-3404