Epidemiologist Ii - Substance Use Health Services Analyst

Public Health Seattle & King County is seeking a Epidemiologist II - Substance Use Health Services Analyst (Data Analyst) with advanced data science experience to build and maintain a system to monitor indicators of linkage and retention in care for Substance Use treatment programs. With funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) - Overdose Data to Action (OD2A) cooperative agreement, this position will support two divisions: the Assessment, Policy Development, and Evaluation Unit and the Prevention Division. We seek to operationalize and embed equity in all our work. This position reports to Senior Epidemiologists in the APDE Unit and Prevention Division. Applicants from this job posting may be used to recruit for additional positions in this job classification for a period of up to a year.

Public Health-Seattle King County (PHSKC) is the metropolitan health department serving all of King County. The mission of PHSKC is to eliminate health inequities and maximize opportunities for every person to achieve optimal health. This position is primarily based in the Assessment, Policy Development, and Evaluation (APDE), Chronic Disease and Injury Prevention (CDIP), and Communities of Opportunity (COO) division of PHSKC. APDE is a nationally recognized leader in community health assessment, providing health assessment data and analysis to inform planning, policies, and actions, and develop innovative interventions to improve the health of King County residents. More information about the work of the APDE unit can be found at http://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/data.aspx. This position will also work closely with the Prevention Division of PHSKC, specifically with staff leading the agency's efforts to monitor overdose trends, assess drug consumption behaviors, and evaluate treatment and harm reduction programs. This position will also collaborate with staff across King County who are involved in Substance Use related programs.

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
The normal work schedule for this position is Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and will, from time to time, require evening or weekend meetings. This position is subject to the Fair Labor Standards Act and is overtime eligible.

The work associated with this position will be performed remotely; complemented with onsite work and meetings as needed. 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 (access may be supplemented in some situations) where they can reliably perform work and remain available and responsive during scheduled work hours.
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 that is redefining how we work as we transition to the department's hybrid environment.

• With guidance from relevant data stewards and experts in record linkage procedures, assemble datasets to be linked to the King County Integrated Data Hub (IDH) and other administrative data systems.
• Develop, implement, and monitor quality assurance procedures that assess the accuracy and completeness of record linkage.
• In collaboration with key stakeholders, including researchers, direct service providers, and community members, develop and document standardized definitions of indicators pertaining to linkage and retention in Substance Use treatment services.
• Measure linkage and retention indicators and submit metadata and aggregated indicator data to the CDC in a manner that fulfills grant requirements.
• After seeking input from a myriad of stakeholders on format, content, and mode of dissemination, share results with partners via presentations, web-based dashboards, and reports.
• Building on experience in first year of project, create procedures to automate steps of the data processing, record linkage, analysis, and reporting to ensure that linkage and retention indicators will be continuously and sustainably monitored over time.
• Conduct in-depth analyses of linkage and retention in Substance Use treatment that (1) respond to questions posed by persons with lived experience and front-line staff, (2) identify strategies to optimize delivery of services, and (3) measure health inequities.
• Develop conference abstracts and manuscript(s) for peer-reviewed journals describing methods used and results generated through this project.
• Manage tasks efficiently in an environment of shifting priorities with time and budget constraints, and with multiple stakeholders.
• Collaborate closely with internal and external partners to ensure this project contributes to broader department initiatives pertaining to both overdose prevention and modernization of informatics systems.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

• Master's degree in public health, informatics, 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 (listed below).

Knowledge

• Advanced knowledge of Substance Use-related topics gained through lived, professional, academic, or volunteer experience.

• Deep knowledge of equity and social justice principles and practices; lived experience with and/or understanding of the effect of place-, race- and policy & systems inequities on communities and populations.
• Knowledge of statistical methods to evaluate quantitative data.
• Knowledge of the various approaches to record linkage, including their strengths and limitations.
• Knowledge of applied Health Services research methods and principles.

Skills

• Strong ability to use sophisticated statistical software (such as SAS, Stata, R, SQL, Python) to perform a myriad of data functions, such as: creating data sets, conducting quality assurance, analyzing text narratives, creating coding efficiencies, recoding data values, creating date/time calculations, applying formats to variables, merging data sets, and transposing data.
• Demonstrated ability to develop interactive data visualizations that meet the needs of audiences. This includes development of templates and novel visualizations, as well as maintenance of existing dashboards.
• Demonstrated oral and written communication ability to write and present information in multiple formats, including presenting data, findings and conclusions in clear and concise reports, presentations, infographics, etc. for general and technical audiences.
• Demonstrated ability to successfully manage multiple projects requiring attention to detail and coordination of effort, working independently and as part of a team.
• Demonstrated ability to work with, successfully collaborate, and maintain effective working relationships with a variety of individuals from diverse backgrounds, including community members, agency representatives and partners.
• Skill and demonstrated proficiency in: Microsoft Office products (such as Excel, Word, Outlook, PowerPoint, SharePoint, Teams); database creation and maintenance, project management, and software for quantitative analysis (such as Stata, R, SQL, Python, Tableau, GitHub).

Experience

• Demonstrated experience in cleaning, re-formatting, merging, and linking across of large administrative data systems using SAS, Stata, R, SQL, or Python.
• Demonstrated experience conducting quality assurance activities, developing Health Services program metrics, and conducting both descriptive and multivariable analyses.
• Demonstrated experience interpreting numeric results and communicating findings to diverse audiences.

OR:

• Any equivalent combination of experience and education that provides the applicant with the desired skills, knowledge, and ability required to perform the work.

• 3+ years of experience manipulating, visualizing, and analyzing complex, large, line-level administrative data systems (e.g. health care claims, electronic health records, vital statistics, hospitalization, public health program data) using one or more sophisticated statistical software (e.g., SQL, Stata, R, Python, SAS).
• 3+ years of experience of developing reports and data visualizations that clearly articulate methods, results, and implications of quantitative analyses.
• 1+ published peer-reviewed manuscript or technical report as a first author.

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.

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.

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.


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:

• An electronic application through www.kingcounty.gov/jobs or www.governmentjobs.com (use the "Apply" link) including work history and position duties.
• Responses to supplemental questions, including requested examples of your work.
• Resume OR Curriculum Vitae
• Attach a cover letter detailing your background and describing how you meet or exceed the requirements.
• Professional references: please provide names and contact information (email and phone) for three references, including at least one supervisor and one community partner. We will request these in the Supplemental Questions.

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.

• The selection process may...