Newborn Surveillance EPI 1

Connect passion with purpose. The Georgia Department of Public Health is the lead agency entrusted by the people of Georgia to proudly protect lives and promote healthy lifestyles in diverse communities statewide. We are committed to the health of the population of Georgia as our work impacts past, present and future generations.  

What we offer. Enjoy a generous benefits package that includes a flexible work schedule, unique training opportunities, engaging worksite wellness events, wellness breaks, lactation rooms, employee retirement plan, deferred compensation, 13 paid holidays, vacation and sick leave, dental, vision, long term care, and life insurance; in addition to telework opportunities depending on the position.  

Make your mark in public service. As an accredited public health department, we're seeking two highly qualified candidates for the position of Newborn Surveillance EPI 1 within the Division of Epidemiology in Atlanta Georgia.  

Won't you join us? 

Job Responsibilities:

The Newborn Screening Unit within the Maternal Child Health Epidemiology Section (MCH EPI) of GDPH is seeking an individual to assist with fulfilling the deliverables of newborn screening and related surveillance projects targeting the infant population in Georgia. The Newborn Screening Unit is largely responsible for the surveillance and epidemiologic analyses of conditions relevant to three newborn screening areas: bloodspot screening, hearing screening, and pulse oximetry screening.
 
MCH EPI requests an epidemiologist that will focus on newborn screening, referral to services, and related health outcomes. The Newborn Surveillance EPI will guide the ongoing development and perform epidemiologic analyses of metabolic, pulse oximetry, and early hearing screening, as well as various sources of surveillance data (e.g., Georgia Birth Defects Registry, Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome). In collaboration with the Director of Children’s Programs and programs and staff therein, the individual will collect, analyze, and report on data from these screening and surveillance efforts, including analyses examining data quality, completeness, and timeliness. The Newborn Surveillance Epidemiologist EPI will examine the burden of germane health conditions (e.g., early permanent hearing loss, critical congenital heart defects, hemoglobinopathies) in Georgia and assess the distribution, causes, and recommendations for failed and/or missing screenings.
 
MCH EPI houses four teams, including the Health Surveys Team (Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) and oral health surveillance), the Congenital Infections Registry (CIR) Team (infants with congenital exposure to Zika, syphilis, Hepatitis C, and Covid-19), the Newborn Surveillance Team (birth defects, neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), and infant morbidity and mortality), and the Newborn Screening Team. In this position, the Newborn Surveillance EPI will gain experience 1) working with healthcare providers and other notifiable disease reporting entities, 2) performing analyses in support of maternal and child health programmatic efforts, and 3) creating and adhering to screening and surveillance protocols and effective documentation of analytic plans of systems/registries and implementing an analytic work plan. Such tasks are essential to daily functions, without which, screening and surveillance would not be possible. This project will inform the epidemiology of several conditions critical to the infant population. An ideal candidate must be an experienced analyst, good communicator, attentive to detail, able to adapt to changing guidance, and be passionate about supporting infant health screening and surveillance.
 

• Perform surveillance and analytic activities for newborn screening, child health programs, and related health outcome data
• Present findings to various audiences (e.g. lay audience, program staff, leadership staff, epidemiology staff) and in various settings (e.g., direct communication, meetings, conferences) and in a variety of formats (e.g., dashboards, fact sheets, reports)
• On an ongoing basis, evaluate the quality of relevant screening and surveillance systems
• Identify and resolve technical needs to improve the data quality, completeness, and timeliness of each surveillance system
• Respond to internal and external data requests for relevant health conditions in a valid and timely manner
• Guide and assist with report and related technical writing and developing programmatic recommendations
• Serve as a point of contact on newborn screening for Division of Women, Children, and Nursing Services partners
• Work with healthcare partners on quality improvement activities, as needed
• Performs other duties as assigned by the Newborn Surveillance Team Lead and/or the MCH EPI Director

Minimum Qualifications:

Master's degree in Public Health or closely related field from an accredited college or university 

OR 
 

Bachelor's degree in any field from an accredited college or university AND Two years of experience performing epidemiologic work or work in a closely related field.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience interacting with health facilities as part of ongoing surveillance efforts
• Experience with programming and analyzing data using a statistical package (SAS and/or R are preferred)
• Experience utilizing mapping and data visualization software
• Experience working on a multidisciplinary team