Epidemiologist – Public Health Surveillance

Overview

Job Overview:

The Rural Health Institute (RHI) is seeking a full-time Epidemiologist to join our Public Health Infrastructure Team. The Epidemiologist will play a key role in collecting, analyzing, and interpreting health data to inform public health initiatives, improve community health outcomes, and guide strategic decision-making. The Epidemiologist will be a critical contributor to RHI’s mission, bringing expertise in data analysis, public health trends, and epidemiological research to address complex health challenges. This position requires a detail-oriented, analytical thinker who can work independently and collaboratively to drive impactful public health strategies.

General Duties:

• Identifies, gathers, analyzes, and interprets data from a variety of local, state, and national sources. Assures data integrity. Develops data sources, including datasets that utilize population-based data.
• Ability to obtain secondary data from local, regional, state, and national resources and utilizes various methods to obtain primary data. Designs or assists in development of evaluation outcome measures for internal and external programs.
• Interprets data to identify key health issues and consults with local leadership to develop priorities and guide development of effective intervention programs.
• Works within the Data and Epidemiology team on special projects to conduct analyses, set priorities and take action on special health issues and/or with high risk populations.
• Conducts literature searches and produces reports on evidence-based interventions and policy options.
• Uses the results of community health assessment to help plan and guide project implementation.
• Prepares reports to track and document current community health trends, and disparities in the local population.
• Identifies emerging public health issue areas.
• Collaborates with local stakeholders including, but not limited to, law enforcement, coroner’s office, local healthcare providers, human service organizations and other public health entities.
• Presents data and/or helps to facilitate meetings that support a data-driven decision making process.
• Ability to work collaboratively in a face-paced work environment while managing multiple tasks and competing deadlines.
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

Core Analytical and Project Management Skills
Demonstrates a strong capability to learn new systems, organize and analyze complex data, and plan public health projects. This can be demonstrated by:

An advanced degree (master’s level or higher) in Public Health, Epidemiology, Data Science, Information Science/Technology, Social Sciences, or related fields.
A robust portfolio or examples of professional work involving epidemiological analysis, data management, or public health research.
A combination of formal education and experience in data analysis or coding that enhances epidemiological research capabilities.
Independent and Collaborative Work Experience
Ability to work effectively both independently and as part of a team. Skilled in coordinating with external partners and stakeholders to develop and implement data-driven public health strategies. Examples include:

Prior experience in leadership roles within public health or research projects.
Background in teaching, training, or mentoring in data analysis, epidemiology, or public health principles.
Data Communication and Reporting Skills
Exhibits strong skills in communicating scientific and data-driven insights to diverse audiences. Can interpret and present complex health data to inform decision-making. This can be demonstrated by:

A degree or substantial coursework in fields like Epidemiology, Public Health, Communication (with a focus on science communication), or Writing.
A portfolio or record of past work in data communication, such as health reports, assessments, or community presentations.
Technical Proficiency
Familiarity with Google Workspace, data visualization tools, and platforms like SPSS, Tableau, and GIS software used in epidemiological studies.

Relevant Public Health Experience
Experience in areas relevant to public health, such as harm reduction, minority stress, housing/homelessness, or mental health. While not required, knowledge of these topics enhances the candidate’s ability to address community health needs. This may include:

Professional or volunteer roles in health services, public health agencies, or similar settings, providing an understanding of community-level health issues and responses.
RHI strives to create a work environment where staff can grow, explore, and take care of themselves while working together to advance the agency’s goals. We are currently largely hybrid, and attempt to build in flexibility (in schedule, mode of work, etc.) for staff to take care of their needs, with the understanding that staff will do better work for the agency if their needs are being appropriately met.