Epidemiologist (Research Scientist II) – California
California
Program Innovation Office – Field Staff- Non-Infectious Disease /
Full-Time /
Hybrid
In the United States, more than 4,000 people on average die from unintentional drowning each year. Drowning prevention strategies can prevent these tragedies from occurring, but knowledge gaps exist in fatal and nonfatal drowning data and understanding how to effectively implement interventions. The CDC Foundation is working in partnership with the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) to provide a term-limited, one year position within the CDPH Injury and Violence Prevention Branch to identify opportunities to strengthen drowning data collection and surveillance and describe burden and circumstances of drowning in California.
The Research Scientist II will support the independent design, development and implementation of epidemiological surveillance, research, evaluation, and dissemination to support drowning prevention activities. Specifically, the Research Scientist II will support the Childhood Drowning Data Collection Pilot Program, a comprehensive drowning surveillance system to capture detailed and relevant data on fatal and nonfatal drowning injuries among Californians of all ages.
The Research Scientist II will work under the general direction of the Chief of the Unintentional Injury Data Unit within the Injury and Violence Prevention Branch of the California Department of Public Health and work closely with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.
Responsibilities
- Collaborate with participating counties to collect detailed data on childhood drownings and develop recommendations for an ongoing statewide system for collecting relevant child drowning data.
- Work effectively with partners from other agencies, multi-disciplinary professionals, lay organizations, individuals, and other water safety stakeholders.
- Provide authoritative scientific guidance or consultation to other scientists and staff contributing to research, surveillance, and prevention of injuries.
- Analyze data and disseminate results through presentations and reports, including reports to the state legislature and a California Water Safety Action Plan for Children.
- Minimal travel (5%) may be required within the state to contribute to pilot project goals, as necessary, and may include overnight stays.
Minimum Qualifications
- A Master’s degree is required, preferably in public health or a health-related field.
- Experience conducting public health surveillance, including design and implementation of surveillance data systems.
- Experience independently conducting statistical analyses in SAS, R, or other statistical software.
- Understanding of drowning or other injury prevention epidemiology.
- Experience working collaboratively with diverse partners and stakeholders, including government agencies at various levels, advocacy groups, and public health practitioners.
- Experience disseminating and translating data/research findings for diverse audiences utilizing various tools and methods (e.g., creation of reports/presentations/fact sheets).
- Demonstrated experience interacting effectively and achieving results with internal team members and external partners.
- Ability to work well both independently and as a member of a multidisciplinary team.
Job Highlights
- Position Type: Grant Funded, Limited-term opportunity
- Starting Salary Range: $75,000 to $90,000
- Full Suite of Benefits Available, Exempt, Salary
- Duration of Assignment: 12 Months
- Location: Remote, California-based required
