State of Connecticut Executive Branch

• This class is considered to be the supervisory scientific level in the epidemiology series. It can also be used as a functional title for the director of a program and as such is accountable for monitoring of grants and contracts, planning, implementing and evaluating programmatic goals and objectives.
• This class is distinguished from Epidemiologist 3 by the emphasis on primary responsibility for one or more major programs. This class will have senior managerial responsibility for a statewide project and the incumbent will be the recognized departmental authority in this area. As such the Epidemiologist 4 will coordinate with and sometimes convene experts from other agencies on intrastate, regional, federal and occasionally international levels. The Epidemiologist 4 will have primary responsibility for initiating projects, for designing surveillance and research activities and intervention and evaluation strategies.
• This class is distinguished from Epidemiologist 3 by having full accountability for all work performed, the highest level of required expertise, performance and responsibility for direction of a managerially designated program or project.

• Schedules, assigns, oversees and reviews the work of staff; 
• Provides staff training and assistance; 
• Conducts performance evaluations; 
• Determines priorities and plans program work; 
• Establishes and maintains program procedures; 
• Develops or makes recommendations on the development of policies and standards; 
• Acts as a liaison with other operating units, agencies and outside officials regarding program policies and procedures; 
• Prepares reports and correspondence;
• Conceptualizes and directs one or more major programs in area of disease surveillance, control and intervention; 
• Designs and implements special epidemiologic studies; 
• Plans and evaluates program goals and objectives; 
• Provides expert testimony in public forum or courtroom setting; 
• Writes scientific papers for publication; 
• Develops and implements public information programs for mass media distribution; 
• Advises local health departments, health professionals and voluntary groups on protocols for disease investigation, control and treatment; 
• Seeks to identify and evaluate new diseases or environmental exposures which may cause disease and methods of control; 
• In addition to the foregoing, in the Toxic Hazards Section or its Radon Program, manages and directs investigation and control of chemical and radiologic hazards; 
• Conceptualizes programs for investigation and control of chemical and radiation hazards; 
• Supervises development of qualitative/quantitative risk assessment documents; 
• May teach epidemiologic related courses at institutions of higher learning; 
• May represent the department to the public; 
• May perform complex statistical analysis and oversee management of large data bases; 
• May develop budgets, grants and contracts; may develop departmental policies regulations and legislation; 
• Performs related duties as required.

• Considerable knowledge of
  • occupational/environmental epidemiology and/or toxicology; 
  • relevant agency policies and procedures; 
  • relevant State and Federal laws, statutes and regulations; 
  • disease processes which affect humans and animals; 
• Considerable
  • interpersonal skills; 
  • oral and written communication skills; 
  • statistical skills including familiarity with mainframe and/or personal computer applications and interpretation of data; 
• Considerable ability to
  • develop, design, implement and analyze epidemiologic studies; 
  • recommend and evaluate intervention strategies to prevent future disease; 
• Supervisory ability.

• College training may be substituted for the General Experience on the basis of fifteen (15) semester hours equaling one half (1/2) year of experience to a maximum of four (4) years' for a Bachelor's degree.
• A Master's degree in bacteriology, biochemistry, biostatistics, environmental science, health physics, industrial hygiene, physiology, public health, toxicology may be substituted for one (1) additional year of the General Experience.
• A Doctorate in a related discipline such as medicine, public health or a behavioral or natural science may be substituted for one (1) additional year of the General Experience.

• Incumbents in this class must be willing to be immunized for communicable diseases as necessary and appropriate.
• Incumbents in this class may be required to travel.

This replaces the existing job specification for the class of Epidemiologist 4 (Toxic Hazards) (35 Hour) in Salary Group HC 32 approved effective September 8, 1995. (Revised to modify content and add Acknowledgement section) Final No. 23-018