Epidemiology and Information Scientist

The Science, Strategy and Evidence Directorate leads on the development and strengthening of evaluation, epidemiological methods and behavioural sciences including research methods and evaluation of interventions for UKHSA. The Directorate provides expert support in ethics and research governance and ensures UKHSA has access to essential scientific evidence. It also implements and monitors UKHSA's Science Strategy. The Evaluation & Epidemiological Sciences (EES) Division delivers core functions across UKHSA aligned to the following areas:

• Identify evaluation and epidemiology science priorities which are focused on scientific, research or public health needs & co-ordinate activities to address those
• Lead and collaborate on responsive and high impact evaluations
• Provide a rapid evaluation and epidemiology science advice function to support standard & enhanced response Incident Management Teams (IMTs) as appropriate
• Provide evaluation & epidemiology science advice to the Centres for Climate and Health Security and Pandemic Preparedness
• Establish strategic links with key internal & external stakeholders including the Evaluation and Behavioural Science HPRU leading to delivery of joint priorities and external funding applications for discrete activities
• Support the translation of scientific evidence into policy and practice as appropriate, working closely with the Behavioural Science & Insights Division and the Research Management & Knowledge Division.
• Epidemiological Investigations. Where appropriate, undertake specific steps of an epidemiological study under direction including to design and develop questionnaires e.g. using Select Survey, design and administer databases, prepare descriptive epidemiology, contribute to the production of scientific reports, and interview cases and controls.
• Data & Epidemiological Analyses. Maintain and improve databases, test functionality of new systems, validate the quality of data including use of automated routines and through audit and produce and update Standard Operating Procedures. Have knowledge of, apply and interpret basic statistical tests, conduct statistical analyses of surveillance data, produce reports and outputs using common statistical/database/mapping tools such as Stata, R, ArcGIS, network analysis, SQL, etc, respond to routine and more complex data requests and produce routine surveillance reports, including basic descriptive analysis and interpretation of results.
  
  Contribute to evaluation and epidemiological science activities through assuring data quality, undertaking complex data analyses and seeking to improve and enhance databases and systems. Produce routine reports that include basic descriptive analyses and interpretation. Undertake more complex analytical tasks using common software packages to support analysis such as advanced querying, data validation and pivot tables.
• Research. Support research through contribution to scientific papers and projects on public health surveillance, incidents and other activities as well as through designing study databases and sharing findings at conferences and meetings. Design a study database, and develop queries to analyse data, create automated reports, import/export data from a variety of sources, participate in the interpretation and analysis of research findings and the application of findings to practice and present internally or to local partners, present work/posters at scientific meetings and conferences.
• Management and Leadership. To act as role model adhering to team professional standards, actively engage in meetings, identify potential problems and seek to resolve and undertake a lead role for a specific topic or function area, on behalf of the Division as a whole.…