Field Epidemiologist - HPIV - Communicable Disease Branch.

Department Information
This posting is only open to current residents of the State of Colorado
About Cdphe
At the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, we are charged with protecting Colorado’s health and environment – a responsibility that affects every person and every community in the state. CDPHE is distinctive because we bring public health and environmental protection together under one agency, recognizing that healthy people depend on healthy places. Our teams prevent diseases and injury, respond to emergencies ranging from E.coli outbreaks to global pandemics, reduce air pollution, protect water quality, regulate health facilities, manage environmental hazards, perform advanced laboratory testing, provide birth and death records, and implement health promoting programs. We turn science and data into action, set statewide standards, and work alongside local public health agencies and community partners to meet Colorado’s most pressing health and environmental challenges. Working at CDPHE means applying your expertise to complex, consequential work that can improve lives across the state.
Our mission captures this broad portfolio of work: to advance Colorado’s health and protect the places we live, learn, work, and play. Our vision is a healthy and sustainable Colorado where current and future generations can thrive. Achieving the mission and vision takes bold action, talented people, broad partnerships, and a commitment to serving every Coloradan.
Important Information
This is a remote position primarily conducted via telework/work-from-home arrangements. Occasional travel to a State or alternate location may be required based on business needs.
CDPHE Offers
CDPHE offers a comprehensive benefits package and the opportunity to build a meaningful career in public service. Benefits include:
Medical and dental plans.
Colorado PERA retirement options, including defined benefit plan or defined contribution plan.
Optional 401(K) and 457 retirement plans.
Employer-paid life insurance.
Short- and long-term disability coverage.
Potential flexible working arrangements
11 paid holidays per year and generous paid time off.
Free parking and access to RTD bus lines.
Tuition assistance.
Employee wellness programs.
Professional development opportunities.
Career opportunities throughout Colorado state government.
Some positions may qualify for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program .
Description Of Job
The Work Unit: The Communicable Disease Branch (CDB) monitors, investigates and controls epidemic and communicable diseases affecting the public health in Colorado, as required under Colorado statute including: invasive bacterial diseases; foodborne/enteric diseases; waterborne diseases; respiratory diseases; vaccine preventable diseases; healthcareassociated infections; tuberculosis; and zoonotic/vectorborne diseases
What You Will Do: This position serves as an epidemiological resource and staff authority for local public health agencies and Communicable Disease Branch (CDB) units, as well as for other public health partners (such as schools, hospitals, healthcare providers, health care coalitions (HCCs), animal control officers, veterinarians, etc.) and works with other CDPHE programs within the Division of Environmental Health and Sustainability, Water Quality Control Division, the Air Pollution Control Division, the Office of Emergency Preparedness and Response, and other programs as needed for disease or acute environmental responses. This position possesses a unique technical expertise in epidemiology response and planning and supports local public health agency (LPHA) staff and CDPHE CDB staff in responding onsite and in the field to communicable disease cases, clusters, and outbreaks by providing direction, leadership, and coordination. In providing technical assistance and response support to LPHAs, this position makes decisions and is authorized to take action and issue opinions that provide direction for LPHA public health investigation activities. The position also coordinates with partners in research, development, communication, and execution of epidemiologic aspects of public health preparedness and response efforts and strategies.
This position provides a unique level of epidemiology technical expertise around response to acute environmental health events, toxic exposures clusters and outbreaks and disaster epidemiology. This role requires specific knowledge about assessing the short- and long-term health effects of natural and man-made disasters to guide decision making for outbreak or cluster investigation, emergency response, recovery, and future prevention. This position works with environmental epidemiology and toxicology subject matter experts to investigate clusters of illness that may have environmental components in terms of cause, severity, and scope. This position accomplishes this through creation of ad-hoc response surveillance systems, engaging with syndromic surveillance and other reporting and surveillance systems, and participating in cross-cutting work groups with environmental health partners, syndromic surveillance, and relevant stakeholders. This position participates in the Council for State and Territorial Epidemiologists disaster epidemiology sub-committee and the CDC Disaster Epidemiology Community of Practice. This role also requires unique knowledge and expertise in the structure and roles of environmental programs at CDPHE as well as local public health agency structure, capacity, and response workflow in order to provide services to these partners.
Key Responsibilities
Provides authoritative technical expertise on epidemiology for LPHAs in assigned region
Develops and maintains relationships with staff at LPHAs and other partners in those jurisdictions including onsite and in the field
Provides regular consultative services to local public health agencies, CDB staff and other partners (such as long term care facilities, prisons, and schools) regarding appropriate response and outbreak investigation methods and disease control measures including onsite and in the field
Investigates individual cases and exposures, by obtaining laboratory results, medical record information, and illness details and exposure histories through case interviews to attempt to confirm the condition and determine the source of exposure
Investigates clusters and outbreaks of public health importance as the lead investigator, or assists local public health agency staff including onsite and in the field(depending on the type of outbreak, local availability of resources, and location of exposures or affected persons)
Provides direct technical assistance onsite and in the field for complex or large case, cluster, or outbreak investigations, supporting LPHA response structures as needed.
Implement and recommend appropriate disease control and prevention measures based on agency protocols, the CDPHE Communicable Disease Manual, CDC guidance, and known best practices including onsite and in the field
Conducts epidemiologic studies (especially for outbreak investigations), including study and questionnaire design, hypothesis generation, database design, data entry and analysis, and report generation including from the field during response to public health events
Facilitate sample/specimen collection and laboratory testing for diseases of public health importance statewide
Conducts and participates in epidemiological assessments statewide (ex: retail food establishments associated with foodborne illness complaints and outbreaks, hantavirus and other zoonotic diseases, lead exposures, etc)
Write final outbreak reports and summaries for outbreaks
Be familiar with the Health Alert Network (HAN) system, assisting with development of health alerts as necessary, support LPHA and other partner enrollment and distribution of HANs
Respond to public health-related incidents across the state when additional epidemiology capacity is needed including onsite and in the field
During case and outbreak investigations, maintains communication channels, serves as a liaison/point-of contact, and facilitates communication between local public health agencies, other CDPHE divisions and programs (such as the Division of Environmental Health and Sustainability, Laboratory Services Division, Environmental Divisions, and Health Facilities Division), CDC, and other federal partners including in the field during response to public health events
Provides communicable disease and outbreak guidance, information, education, and training to health care providers, CDPHE colleagues, local public agencies, other public health partners, and the public statewide.
Brings complex calls or situations to the attention of higher level staff for review or consultation.
Provides technical authority, expertise and direction to local public health agency communicable disease staff for case and outbreak investigation and response, implementation of disease control measures based on standard guidance and response best practices, and interpreting epidemiological data and support sharing with HCC and community stakeholders including for in person meetings and responses statewide.
Supports LPHA access to state surveillance systems, databases, and electronic laboratory ordering systems
Monitor, analyze, and interpret disease surveillance data - recognize/detect clusters and outbreaks in

Work arrangement
Yes