• Ensures program compliance with the CDC guidance and the cooperative agreement, including setting program goals and objectives, reporting on progress toward objectives, overseeing program implementation, maintaining security and confidentiality, and communicating with the CDC project officer or epidemiologist. 
• Develops and maintains a policies and procedures manual for hepatitis surveillance. 
• Develops training, manuals, and other media on surveillance practices and confidentiality of information. 
• Attends workshops, conferences, conference calls, and meetings, as required by CDC and/or as needed. 
• Serves as an advisory member of the Community Planning Group for programmatic use of data for decision making and program planning. 
• Serves as point of contact for CDC and lead investigator on cases of public health importance. 
• Works with the bureau chief, assistant attorney general, and state epidemiologist on issues related to release of confidential information or other legal aspects of reporting and case investigation and follow up.
• Ensures disease surveillance program activities are conducted according to best practices and CDC guidance. 
• Conducts passive and active case surveillance, including laboratory and case reporting, case follow up, data entry, and referral for case-patient follow up. 
• Conducts case surveillance and follow up on infants exposed to hepatitis C perinatally. 
• Conducts investigations of cases of public health importance (COPHI), in conjunction with the state epidemiologist and CDC. 
• Ascertains deaths and other information through annual data matching to birth and death records, the Social Security Death Master File, the National Death Index, and the Iowa Cancer Registry. 
• Responds to calls from providers and follows up on case reports in a timely manner. 
• Provides education to health care providers on viral hepatitis reporting requirements and other aspects of viral hepatitis testing, reporting, and follow up. 
• Transfers data to CDC on monthly schedule, or as directed by CDC. 
• Utilizes alternate data sources for case finding and evaluation, to include Ryan White Program, Medicaid, IPOP, and other registries. 
• Assures quality of surveillance data by conducting performance management activities, including an annual evaluation of the system and engaging in quality improvement projects to ensure accuracy, timeliness, and completeness of reporting. 
• Conducts data analysis and data dissemination activities. Ensures dissemination of timely and accurate information, including an epidemiological profile, semi-annual surveillance reports, special data requests, and CDC and HRSA grant applications and reports, and NASTAD, CSTE, or other reports.
• Responds to data requests in a timely manner. 
• Performs time-space analyses monthly to identify rapidly growing clusters or numbers of cases in excess of expected numbers that would trigger outbreak response activities. 
• Makes data available to surveillance investigation team, and participates in discussions of outbreak response activities. 
• Prepares and maintains an Outbreak Response Plan, and serves as the liaison to CDC epidemiologists during cluster investigation and outbreak response.

Applicant must pass a background check prior to employment. Selectives

185 Epidemiology
6 months’ experience, 12 semester hours, or a combination of both in epidemiology, which involves:

• The surveillance for respiratory diseases, vector-born diseases, enteric diseases, antimicrobial-resistant agents, or other infectious or non-infectious diseases 
• The development of protocols and procedures for data collection and analysis, ongoing analysis of data using a variety of databases and statistical analysis programs
• The development and dissemination of written reports, graphs, tables, etc.

Minimum Qualification Requirements

Applicants must meet at least one of the following minimum requirements to qualify for positions in this job classification:
1) Graduation from an accredited college or university with a graduate degree in public health with at least two courses related to the principles and practice of epidemiology.
2) All of the following (a and b):
a. Graduation from an accredited college or university with a non-public health graduate degree with at least two courses related to the principles and practice of epidemiology; and
b. Three years of experience in applied epidemiology in an infectious, noninfectious, or chronic diseases; environmental poisonings or conditions; injury prevention; or a substance misuse related epidemiology program.