This position supervises the Surveillance Section within the Bureau of Epidemiology. This position leads surveillance strategies, data collection, data management, and data reporting for the Bureau of Epidemiology and oversees all surveillance applications supporting acute disease investigations for promoting, protecting, and improving the health of all people in Florida. This position supervises both career service, select exempt services, and contract employees. Responsible for the supervision of staff including appraisals, planning, and directing their work, approving leave, having the authority for hiring, and taking disciplinary action or effectively recommending such actions.
Supervises direct reports including motivating, training, providing guidance, and direction. Develops expectations and meets with staff regularly to discuss performance, complete performance reviews, and discipline action, if needed. Maintains vacation and work schedules to ensure proper coverage and completes timesheets. Ensures all staff complete required training and are offered additional training.
Manages the surveillance programs for the Bureau of Epidemiology. Plans, implements, and sets program strategies and direction. Conducts prepares, and reviews reports, studies, publications, and research on operational trends and strategic program objectives. Oversee surveillance programs and the systems supporting them (Merlin- reportable diseases, ESSENCE-FL-syndromic surveillance, EpiCom-health alert network, EpiGateway-external private provider data collection); development of their epidemiologic scientific content; and extraction of surveillance data to support cluster and outbreak detection and investigation.
Participate in the development of administrative rules and policies impacting public health surveillance. Acts as the owner of FDOH policy for Merlin, EpiGateway, EpiCom, and ESSENCE-FL.
Research new surveillance methodologies and technology to ensure state-of-the-art technology for communicable disease surveillance systems. Manages and leads innovative development efforts of the state acute disease and response surveillance system applications, data security, strategic planning, training, electronic laboratory reporting (ELR), and health information exchange integration.
Develops and writes Federal grants to fund projects related to epidemiologic surveillance. Acts as the Principal Investigator and functional custodian of monies obtained through grant requests. This includes developing a spending plan, approving purchases, selecting vendors, developing statements of work, and monitoring contracts and purchase orders.
Consults with staff and others in government, business, and private organizations to discuss issues, coordinate activities, resolve problems and explore partnerships. Participates in activities to promote business and expand services, and provides technical assistance in conducting conferences, seminars, and workshops. Acts as the Department Epi-X contact, coordinating with CDC, facilitating yearly drills, and approving new users.
Is available for indeterminate periods for disaster response: this includes coordinating post-disaster or event disease and condition surveillance activities, including the production of Situation Reports as necessary and specified by the operational period.
Participate as required to share on-call duty assignments with other staff, to provide continuous 24-hour telephone coverage for the Bureau of Epidemiology. Weekly assignments will occur approximately every 4 to 6 weeks, depending upon the number of staff involved. The incumbent will be expected to be available to accept all incoming after-hour (5 pm to 8 am) weekday, weekend, and holiday calls, assess the urgency of each call, and provide an appropriate response. On occasion, a call regarding selected “Hot Button” diseases (i.e. exposure to rabies, suspect botulism or bacterial meningitis case) or a community-wide emergency (i.e. foodborne outbreak, hurricane, tornado, bioterrorism alert) will require extensive follow-up and coordination with other agencies, etc. that is beyond the scope of the on-call assignment.
Performs other duties as assigned.
Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
Ability to supervise staff, delegate assignments and conduct performance evaluations. Ability to produce ad-hoc data assignments with quick timeframes. Ability to inform leadership of data and data system nuances. Knowledge of public health surveillance and applicable laws, rules and policies. Knowledge of state of Florida reportable diseases. Knowledge of data systems outside of the unit that potentially link with the unit’s data system. Knowledge of statistical software programs and language. Skill in Microsoft Office software programs. Skill in developing data reports. Skill in data visualization techniques.
