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Zoonotic & Emerging Diseases Investigations Lead/Subject Matter Expert (Project/Program Manager III)

Forrest Solutions

Seattle, Washington, 98101

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Salary:

$96699.20 - $122574.40 Year

Job type:

Monday to Friday
Weekends as needed
No weekends
Weekends only
Others

Job Schedule:

Morning shift
Day shift
Evening shift
Night shift
others

Job benefits:

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
12 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

Description:

The Communicable Disease Epidemiology and Immunization (CD-Imms) section resides within the Prevention Division at Public Health – Seattle & King County. The CD-Imms section focuses on three major functions: Disease Surveillance, Case Investigation, and Intervention. The section is led by the Chief and the Deputy Chief and is composed of 4 teams: Investigations, Analytics and Informatics, Immunization and Administration. We are a large skilled, passionate team of ~75 FTEs that oversees the 65+ reportable diseases and conditions (excluding TB, STIs and HIV) from healthcare professionals and laboratories in King County. Some of our work includes investigating cases and identifying other exposed persons requiring follow up; analyzing disease report data and trends to identity opportunities for disease prevention; monitor emergency department visits for indications of outbreaks or biological terrorism; conduct influenza surveillance year-round. We also lead immunization strategies to increase vaccine uptake especially among school age children and high-risk groups. Cross-collaboration across teams is central to our workflow and each team supports one another to achieve the objectives of the section.

This position is responsible for a broad range of activities, including ensuring the timeliness and quality of communicable disease investigation and response activities; developing and updating protocols and tools for disease investigation, outbreak management, data collection, and entry of data into surveillance databases; quality improvement efforts; supervision of multidisciplinary staff; training and development of staff; managing internal and external communications related to disease investigation and control; supporting the development of community partnerships; identifying funding opportunities and providing grant oversight; and administrative duties as assigned.

This Program Lead will be a Subject Matter Expert (SME) for zoonotic, vector-borne, and emerging infections, and will have knowledge of epidemiology, clinical characteristics, transmission, control measures, and prevention recommendations in humans and animals. This position will be responsible for staff supervision; training, directing, and overseeing case and outbreak investigations; response and prevention activities; and grant activities related to zoonotic, vector-borne, and emerging infections. This position will provide oversight and backup coverage to other Program Leads on all communicable disease investigations, response, and training activities (including vaccine preventable diseases, foodborne and enteric diseases, viral hepatitis [Hepatitis A, B, D, and E], COVID-19, and healthcare-associated infections). The PPM III Zoonotic and Emerging Diseases Investigations Lead will participate in after-hours call coverage, approximately 6 to 8 weeks per This position is non-represented and is not eligible for overtime.

This position reports to the managers for the Communicable Disease Investigation, Outreach, Response and Education (IORE) team [Public Health Veterinarian (PHV), Public Health Services Supervisor (PHSS), and Project/Program Manager IV (PPM IV)] and works collaboratively with the Section’s other Program Leads, Program Managers, Public Health Veterinarians, Medical Epidemiologists, Analytics and Informatics Team, Immunization Team, and Administration Team.

Commitment To Equity and Social Justice:
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.

The county government has 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 all communities are incorporated into our emergency planning and public outreach efforts.

We recognize that structural racism consists of principles and practices that cause and justify an inequitable distribution of rights, opportunities, and experiences across racial groups. Since declaring Racism is a Public Health Crisis in June 2020, King County and Public Health committed to being intentionally anti-racist and accountable to Black, Indigenous and People of Color communities.

To learn more, please visit http://www.kingcounty.gov/elected/executive/equity-social-justice.aspx

Job Duties
Provide supervision, training, and oversight of program activities:

Supervise a multidisciplinary team, including hiring, onboarding, training, coaching, mentoring, developing, and constructively and fairly evaluating staff with a variety of backgrounds and experience.
Provide direction and oversight for a multi-disciplinary team of staff conducting disease investigations.
Coordinate disease investigation and outbreak response:
Serve as a Subject Matter Expert by providing consultation on epidemiology, clinical characteristics, disease transmission, disease control measures, and disease prevention measures.
Develop and implement strategies for conducting quality and timely case and outbreak investigation and response activities.
Lead/facilitate team meetings to coordinate disease control activities and projects of assigned staff, within and across teams.
Coordinate and participate in disease response activities with internal and external partners.
Support public health emergency preparedness and response activities.
Represent Public Health with internal and external partners, including community stakeholders, and state and federal agencies.
Coordinate with internal Public Health teams to prioritize the team’s work and deploy staff to respond to investigations and outbreaks.
Develop, inform, and distribute guidance documents and trainings to stakeholders, including internal program leads, Public Health leadership, DOH, CDC, DSHS, and community partners. Participate in and present educational webinars and other outreach activities as needed.
Develop and maintain protocols and other tools and resources (e.g., scripts, frequently asked questions, intake forms, data entry and data management guidelines, training materials) relevant to the team’s work.
Advance data collection, data quality, reporting, and program evaluation:
Monitor the quality of data that are collected and entered into data systems and collaborate with the Section's Analytics and Informatics team to improve collection and management of data.
Identify key data that are needed to support disease investigation, surveillance, response, and reporting, and collaborate with epidemiologists on the Analytics & Informatics team to guide development of data systems, analyses, and reports.
Develop and implement an evaluation of unit performance, including data collection and monitoring regarding activities and outcomes to inform process improvement activities.
Coordinate and communicate summaries and data about case investigations, outbreaks, and response activities to Public Health leadership, colleagues, healthcare providers, and the public.
Advance equity and social justice:
Engage and seek input from impacted communities so that structures, systems, decisions, and policies advance equity and social justice by ensuring that resources are allocated in a way that addresses health disparities.
Develop strategies and tools to structurally embed race and social justice policies and practices in the work.
Advance funding opportunities:
Seek and apply for new grant and funding opportunities.
Manage contracts or grants, including tracking deliverables.
Experience, Qualifications, Knowledge, Skills
Demonstrated skills and subject matter expertise in communicable disease epidemiology, clinical characteristics, surveillance systems, overseeing and directing disease investigations and control measures
Background in public health, health education, nursing, health services, veterinary, clinical, or related fields
Experience in a supervisory, mentorship, or leadership role
Experience with program management, planning, development, continuous quality improvement, and evaluation
Experience with data collection, monitoring data quality, and interpreting and reporting on data, and attention to detail
Skill in establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with others, including working as a part of a multidisciplinary team
Demonstrated knowledge and ability to incorporate principles of equity and social justice into program work, including working with diverse populations (race, ethnicity, gender, ability, age, sexual orientation, and socio-economic status) in a culturally competent manner.
Demonstrated skills with independent decision-making, while understanding limitations of job role and elevating decision-making as needed in the absence of guidance from federal, state, and local agencies
Ability to manage multiple competing priorities and projects under a rapidly changing environment, with the ability to plan and prioritize effectively in this environment
Ability to interpret and adapt public health guidance to various settings
Strong organization, facilitation, and coordination skills
Demonstrated skill in managing grants and contracts, including tracking deliverables
Demonstrated ability to create, compose, and edit written materials
Demonstrated ability to effectively communicate orally and in writing with experience preparing and presenting written and visual communications for both lay audiences and healthcare professionals, including presentations, brochures, fact sheets, blogs, press releases, website material, healthcare alerts, scientific manuals, newsletters, and articles
Public Health relies on office automation (Microsoft Office 365), other web enabled tools, and multiple large databases. Candidates must be proficient and comfortable with computer use to perform essential functions of the position.
Ability to travel between sites on a regular basis in a timely manner
Desired Qualifications:
Subject matter expertise experience in zoonotic, vector-borne, and emerging infectious diseases investigations and outbreaks is highly desired
Experience with direct supervision of staff, including hiring, training, performance evaluations, and coaching
Experience or knowledge in a local or state public health practice setting
Experience in leadership with oversight of multidisciplinary teams
Knowledge of county hiring and contracting procedures highly desirable
Experience with community engagement
Demonstrated skill in grant writing
Demonstrated ability to learn and comprehend new and complex bodies of knowledge efficiently
Bilingual and/or bicultural
Supplemental Information
Forbes 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 the recruiter listed on this job announcement.

Application Process:
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 the recruiter listed on this job announcement.

The following items are required to be considered for this vacancy:
NeoGov Job Application (The responses on your job application should be thorough and complete and will be used in the screening process)
Supplemental Questions (The responses to the supplemental questions should be thorough and complete and will be used in the screening process)
Your application may be rejected as incomplete if you do not include the relevant information in the application. Cover letters and/or resumes are not accepted in lieu of a completed application. Applications and/or Supplemental Questionnaires that state "see my resume" or "see my personnel file" are considered incomplete and will not be accepted.

Necessary Special Requirements:
The selection process may include evaluation of application materials and supplemental questions, interviewing, and testing. You must completely fill out the application with your relevant education and work experience.
The selected candidate must be able to pass a thorough background investigation, but findings may not necessarily disqualify an applicant for employment.
For more information on our selection process, please refer to www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/jobs/hiring. For tips on interviewing, please visit https://www.kingcounty.gov/~/media/audience/employees/learning-and-development/Interview_Tips.ashx?la=en.
Employees are required to protect the privacy and security of protected health information as defined in State and Federal Law.
Public Health relies on office automation (Microsoft Office) and web-based enabled tools, therefore candidates must be proficient and comfortable with computer use to perform functions associated with on-going work.
Employees are required to adhere to OSHA/WISHA guidelines including but not limited to completing their mandatory trainings on time and obtaining required immunizations.
Regular and reliable attendance, effective communication skills, and development of effective working relationships are requirements of all Public Health positions.
When Public Health responds to an emergency, and in accordance with relevant CBA language and/or KC policy and procedures, we may assign duties outside your regular job description. This may involve responding at any time, including nights and weekends, with possible deployment to locations other than the department.
If you need a disability accommodation in the application or testing process, please call the contact number listed on the job announcement.
Work Schedule:
This position is exempt from the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act and is not eligible for overtime pay. The work schedule is normally Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., 40 hours per week. This position may require flexibility to accommodate different work schedules and work locations. Occasional evening and weekend work may be required. This position participates in after-hours (evening, night, weekend, and holiday) on-call coverage (approximately 6 to 8 weeks per year). The number of weeks can vary depending on program needs and staffing resources. Currently open to AWS and a hybrid work environment.

This position participates in the Section's response during outbreaks and emergencies as approved by supervisor.

Teleworking:
Some of the work associated with this position will be performed through teleworking, and will report to office location and to meetings as needed. Travel to other work locations may be necessary. Employees will have access to shared workspaces at various King County facilities. Employees must reside in Washington state and within a reasonable distance to their King County worksite to respond to workplace reporting requirements.

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. 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.

Union Affiliation: This position is not represented by a union.

Contact:
For questions about this recruitment, please contact Sarah Dunkinson, sdunkinson@kingcounty.gov.

Skill:

Communication
Leadership
Teamwork
Interpersonal
Learning/adaptability
Self-management
Open mindedness
Strong work ethic
technology
Others

Others Requirements:

Demonstrated skills and subject matter expertise in communicable disease epidemiology clinical characteristics surveillance systems overseeing and directing disease investigations and control measures
Background in public health health education nursing health services veterinary clinical or related fields
Experience in a supervisory mentorship or leadership role
Experience with program management planning
development continuous quality improvement and evaluation
Experience with data collection monitoring data quality and interpreting and reporting on data and attention to detail
Skill in establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with others including working as a part of a multidisciplinary team
Demonstrated knowledge and ability to incorporate principles of equity and social justice into program work including working with diverse populations (race
ethnicity gender ability age sexual orientation and socio-economic status) in a culturally competent manner
Demonstrated skills with independent decision-making while understanding limitations of job role and elevating decision-making as needed in the absence of guidance from federal state and local agencies
Ability to manage multiple competing priorities and projects under a rapidly changing environment with the ability to plan and prioritize effectively in this environment
Ability to interpret and adapt public health guidance to various settings
Strong organization facilitation and coordination skills
Demonstrated skill in managing grants and contracts including tracking deliverables
Demonstrated ability to create compose and edit written materials
Demonstrated ability to effectively communicate orally and in writing with experience preparing and presenting written and visual communications for both lay audiences and healthcare professionals including presentations brochures fact sheets blogs press releases website material healthcare alerts scientific manuals newsletters and articles
Public Health relies on office automation (Microsoft Office 365) other web enabled tools and multiple large databases. Candidates must be proficient and comfortable with computer use to perform essential functions of the position
Ability to travel between sites on a regular basis in a timely manner

Category:

Service industry

Positions:

9

Location:

In-person