UK Health Security Agency
Senior Epidemiology Scientist
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Supporting Hub, Bristol
Job Summary
The Senior Epidemiology Scientist works closely with colleagues to provide senior epidemiological support across a number of areas. Specifically, this post will provide senior scientific support to the epidemiological investigation of incidents and outbreaks of infectious diseases, supporting local Health Protection Teams and in collaboration with other partners. This will include leading and managing the technical and analytical aspects of epidemiological outbreak investigations and routine surveillance activities, and leading and supporting a team in carrying out these tasks.
The interface with local, regional and national colleagues, as well as with external stakeholders, will be an important feature of this role, including building and maintaining strong relationships with colleagues across the National Infection Service and wider UKHSA and external colleagues including the NHS, local authorities and academia.
The post holder will also take a lead role in public health scientific analysis and writing reports on specific projects, regular and ad hoc publications and peer reviewed publications.
Job Description
Specific duties of the role may vary depending on the site and teams/functions.
Surveillance and Data Analysis
- Identify surveillance needs within given lead areas (including horizon scanning), create surveillance system specifications, conduct complex statistical analyses and interpret surveillance data, making appropriate recommendations, and translating it into public health action, develop automated routines and solutions and supervise / assure on the preparation, quality and delivery of routine and ad hoc surveillance reports.
- Authorise /manage complex or sensitive data requests and in the development of outputs and statistical analyses.
- Responsible for planning, implementing and maintaining a high level of surveillance and high-quality epidemiology to meet local and regional needs, providing expert technical advice to PH practitioners on the design, analysis and interpretation of surveillance databases and data whilst assessing the current and future political /economic /scientific /technological /legal /environmental influences on teamwork.
- Take a lead role in public health scientific analyses and writing reports on specific projects, regular and ad hoc publications and peer reviewed publications.
- Oversee routine surveillance activities across specific topic areas, including routine outputs, evaluating and responding to local needs.
Outbreak Support and Epidemiological Investigations
- Lead and manage the technical and analytical aspects of epidemiological outbreak investigations including advising on study design, writing protocols for analytical studies, overseeing questionnaire design and study database development, training interviewers, preparing outbreak reports and supervising and supporting investigations into exceedances.
Strategic Thinking and Partnership Working
- Build and maintain effective relationships with key stakeholders and partners across the National Infection Service, wider PHE and NHS colleagues at regional/local level as appropriate to role.
- Identify and/or provide subject matter expertise and utilise effectively the various forms of engagement available to develop comprehensive stakeholder relationships.
- Manage delivery of agreed work programme including timely reporting to stakeholders and work in partnership to ensure needs of stakeholders are met.
Audit, Quality and Governance
- Evaluate existing surveillance systems (acting on results) and the acute response to incidents and outbreak, ensuring that it is used to improve standards and consistency across the team, evaluate teaching sessions and undertake and supervise audits as part of the team audit programme.
Research
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- Identify research questions, project manage a research study, analyse datasets with appropriate methodology to answer research questions, and translate results into public health action.
Management and Leadership
- To be a visible, positive and competent role model and motivator, monitoring team professional standards. Adopt a senior leadership role for scientists within Field Epidemiology and represent Field Service at PHE and external scientific fora.
- Be member of Field Service national and team senior management teams, with involvement in business planning and development of surveillance, research and training strategies.
- Support senior managers to ensure day-to-day operational delivery of the epidemiology service, its responsibilities and resources are fully equipped and fit for purpose. Deputize where appropriate, using leadership approaches and skills.
- Provide consultant level representation for Field Service for a named Region and for a Field Service defined programme area.
- Effective line management of staff (if applicable) to ensure flexibility and capacity to meet the team’s needs.
- Teach colleagues and stakeholders on surveillance and epidemiology, supporting ongoing training activities within the department, develop teaching material and courses, assess teaching requirements of team and colleagues and supervise MSc and other short term team attachments.
Communication and key working relationships
The post holder will build and maintain effective working relationships and communicate regularly with a wide range of individuals, clinical and non-clinical, internal and external to UKHSA.
This list is not exhaustive.
Person specification
Essential Criteria
- First degree (or equivalent qualification) in a science subject
- Higher degree in Epidemiology, Public Health or an allied subject, or equivalent qualification
- Completion of Field Epidemiology Training Programme or comparable applied epidemiology experience
- Knowledge of principles and practice of surveillance, including data management, data transmission, data security, data quality, data analysis including descriptive statistics and graphics and data reporting
- Experience of interpreting and evaluating complex epidemiological data, sensitive health data analyses and performing analytical epidemiology and concepts in outbreak situations
- Demonstrable experience of public health, health protection or epidemiology including epidemiology for outbreak investigations
- Knowledge and experience of common statistical tests, modelling and analyses and interpret results appropriately, including for research purposes
- Experience of teaching epidemiology and/or surveillance and able to facilitate a learning culture
- Experience of effective line management
- Able to build and maintain effective relationships with co-workers and key stakeholders, negotiate with senior stakeholders on difficult and controversial issues, and present complex and sensitive information to large and influential groups
- Understanding of information governance including data protection and confidentiality requirements
- Excellent oral and written communication skills with proven presentation and scientific report writing skills
- Proficient and/or expert in common statistical/ database/mapping tools such as Stata, R, GIS, network analysis, SQL, etc.
- Proven capability to plan over short, medium and long-term timeframes and adjust plans and resource requirements accordingly
- People supervisory and leadership skills that empower, support, and develop teams to encourage high performance and enable team members to reach their full potential
- Ability to make decisions autonomously, engender trust and confidence and demonstrate integrity in the provision of advice and support whilst working to tight and often changing timescales
- An understanding of and commitment to equality of opportunity and good working relationships
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Desirable Criteria
- Experience of research activities with a suitable publication record (3+ papers including 1+ first author) and grant writing experience
- Experience of using advanced epidemiological and statistical software packages.
Salary Information
Alongside your salary of £56,185, UK Health Security Agency contributes £16,276 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).
Selection process details
This vacancy will be assessed using a competency-based framework which will assess your qualifications, knowledge and experience and / or skills and abilities outlined in the essential criteria.
Stage 1: Application & Sift
Competency Based
You will be required to complete an application form. You will be assessed on the listed 17 essential criteria, and this will be in the form of a:
- Application form (Employer/ Activity history’ section on the application)
- 1000 word supporting statement.
This should outline how you consider your skills, experience and knowledge provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with reference to the essential criteria.
You will receive a joint score for your application form and statement. (The application form is the kind of information you would put into your C.V –please be advised you will not be able to upload your CV. Please complete the application form in as much detail as possible). Please do not email us your CV.
Healthjobs UK has a word limit of 1500, but your supporting statement must be no more than 1000 words. We will not consider any words over 1000 words.
Stage 2: Interview
Competency Based
You will be invited to a single remote interview.
Knowledge, experience, skills & abilities will be tested at interview.
There will be a Presentation. You will be asked to prepare and present a 5-minute presentation on an epidemiological topic that will be used to assess your performance against the criteria set out in the personal specification. If invited to interview more details will be shared regarding the presentation.
Eligibility Criteria
External: Open to all external applicants (anyone) from outside the Civil Service (including internal applicants).
Location
This role is being offered as hybrid working based at our Supporting Hub in Bristol. We offer great flexible working opportunities at UKHSA and operate using a hybrid working model where business needs allow. This provides us with greater flexibility about how and where we work, to get the best from our workforce. As a hybrid worker, you will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of your contractual working hours (approximately 3 days a week pro rata, averaged over a month) working at our office.
Security Clearance Level Requirement
Successful candidates must pass a standard disclosure and barring security check before they can be appointed.
Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is Baseline Personnel Security Standard
Nationality requirements
This Job Is Broadly Open To The Following Groups
- UK nationals
- nationals of the Republic of Ireland
- nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
- nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
- nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
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