WINNEBAGO COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT JOB DESCRIPTION

JOB TITLE: EPIDEMIOLOGIST CENTER: HEALTH PROTECTION AND PROMOTION REPORTS TO: CENTER DIRECTOR FLSA STATUS: Exempt GRADE LEVEL: 13

VALUE ADDED/PURPOSE STATEMENT The purpose of this position is to provide expert consultation to Health Department managers concerning descriptive and analytical epidemiology, program evaluation, and policy development. The main value to the Health Department is improving the outcomes of public health practice. The Epidemiologist position is involved in the planning for surveillance of communicable diseases, prevention, investigation and control of individual cases and outbreaks and provides related training opportunities in coordination with the PHERC, and the CD management staff.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES Below is a list of essential duties and responsibilities. Other duties may be assigned.

 Assists with development and updates bioterrorism/flu pandemic management plans and protocols.

 Assists the PHERC in the plans for conducting WCHD/CDC public health surveillance activities to detect possible cases of bioterrorism events/county-wide outbreaks, as requested.

 As an expert, the Epidemiologist reports to the medical community and healthcare professionals data regarding appropriate control and prevention strategies as related to the emergency treatment/interventions and exposure to various communicable diseases in coordination with CD management, PHERC, and Medical Director.

 Assists to develop county-wide and regional emergency response preparedness plans for an act of bioterrorism and other infectious disease outbreaks in cooperation with ESDA and all front-line responders. Utilizing infectious disease knowledge develops protocols to facilitate a multi-local health department response to a natural or intentional emergency situation. Develops other health plans as needed, in partnership with other regional and state entities (i.e., IPLAN, Violence Prevention, WNV response plan, etc.)

 Analyzes data, applying statistical techniques and scientific knowledge, prepares reports and presents findings.

 Plans methodological design of research study and arranges for data collection.

 Confers with Health Department managers, physicians, and others to develop programs to improve public health.  Keeps up-to-date technically and knowledgeable of all aspects of public health practice, aspects of medical practice and informatics.

 Makes judgments about or assesses the value, importance, or quality of public health intervention.

PERIODIC DUTIES

 Provides training in epidemiological principles and techniques, surveillance, and common analytical methods.

 Performs in-service trainings as required.

 Reviews and reports on vital statistics to include birth and death records.

 Coordinates specific activities such as student projects, investigations, etc.

 Maintains liaison and coordination with infectious disease programs within the Illinois Department of Public Health and other local, state, and federal organizations that relate to the achievement of program goals and objectives.

 Participates in county and multi-county preparedness committee meetings.

 Prepares other special reports related to chronic diseases and other public health topics, as directed.

 Performs other duties as required or assigned which are reasonably within the scope of the duties enumerated above.

KNOWLEDGE REQUIRED FOR THE JOB Must have excellent written and oral communication skills, listening skills, organizational skills, report writing and presentation skills and basic computer skills. Must have the ability to analyze data, apply statistical techniques and scientific knowledge, must be able to plan and direct studies to investigate human disease, preventative methods, and treatments for disease.

QUALIFICATIONS To perform this job successfully, the individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE Must have a Master’s Degree in Public Health, Epidemiology or related field. This position requires a minimum of two or more years of related knowledge and experience.

LANGUAGE SKILLS Must have the ability to report, write or edit articles for publication, prepare and deliver lectures, interview, counsel or advise others and be able to evaluate technical data. MATHEMATICAL SKILLS Must have the ability to perform complex mathematical and statistical techniques such as calculus, factor analysis, and probability determination and be able to perform theoretical application.

REASONING ABILTIY Must have the ability to solve a wide range of intellectual and practical problems using non-verbal symbolism and be able to comprehend most abstruse concepts. TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT USED To perform this job successfully, the employee must be able to utilize a car, telephone, cell phone, fax machine, copier, computer and printer and be able to use the following software/computer applications: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, the Internet, SPSS, PEPI, and Seagate Crystal Reports.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to use hands to finger, feel and grasp, talk and hear and use repetitive motion. The employee must exert up to 10 pounds of force occasionally and/or a negligible amount of force frequently or constantly to move objects. Involves sitting most of the time. Specific vision abilities required for this job include near vision, mid-range vision, field of vision, and depth perception.

WORK ENVIRONMENT The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job the employee will be working inside, in a typical office environment. The employee is occasionally exposed to the outside when traveling to meetings and there is rare exposure to communicable diseases and/or pathogens if participating in field investigation. There is exposure to repetitive motion from frequent use of the computer keyboard.

BEHAVIOR EXPECTATIONS

. Treats others with courtesy, respect and a caring manner in all interactions. . Continually looks for, suggest, and work on better ways to conduct work. . Promotes patient rights and ensure confidentiality and privacy at all times. . Be open to new ideas and changes; encourage others to do the same. . Willingly flex to meet changing workload demands and priorities. . Treats each employee as an equal and valued member of the team and work cooperatively with other employees to complete work.