State of Maryland

A Health Services Specialist I is the entry level of investigational work, both in the clinic and in the field, as part of a public health program aimed at the identification, control and/or eradication of chronic and communicable diseases.  Employees in this classification do not supervise other positions.

Employees in this classification receive close supervision from a higher-level Health Services Specialist or other health care professional.

Positions in this classification are evaluated by using the classification job evaluation methodology.  The use of this method involves comparing the assigned duties and responsibilities of a position to the job criteria found in the Nature of Work and Examples of Work sections of the class specification.

The Health Services Specialist I and the Health Services Specialist II are differentiated on the basis of degree of supervisory control exercised by the supervisor over these employees.  The Health Services Specialist I learns to perform duties under close supervision, while the Health Services Specialist II performs the full range of duties and responsibilities under general supervision.

Learns to perform health related investigations in identifying, controlling and eradicating chronic and communicable diseases;

Learns to serve as a consultant for immunization and epidemiological matters;

Learns to interview patients for information about various disease problems;

Learns to investigate certain chronic and communicable disease contacts and suspects for possible disease source and spread;

Learns to prepare factual and detailed reports of investigations;

Learns to confer with Public Health physicians, private physicians and nurses in their assigned area regarding patients;

Learns to perform certain laboratory functions such as venipunctures, gram staining, tuberculin testing, and darkfield microscopy to aid the physician in the diagnosis of certain communicable diseases;

Learns to assist in conducting educational programs in the field of chronic communicable and contagious diseases;

Learns to become proficient in the operation and maintenance of mechanical immunization and tuberculin testing equipment such as the jet injector;

Learns to set up clinics for immunizations against diseases such as diptheria, pertussis, tetanus, polio, smallpox, measles and rubella and for screening the population against diseases such as tuberculosis, cancer, diabetes, and angiotensin;

Learns to participate in special epidemiology studies;

Performs other related duties.

Knowledge of the principles, practices and objectives of public health programs and functions of the State health laws and regulations;

Knowledge of interviewing and investigating techniques used in the epidemiology of chronic and communicable disease;

Knowledge of health educational materials available and techniques for presenting them effectively;

Knowledge of methods and practices in the control of chronic and communicable diseases;

Ability to use interviewing and investigative techniques to obtain pertinent data;

Ability to evaluate and interpret information gathered;

Ability to communicate effectively with health care professionals, patients and the general public.

Education:   A Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university with a major in or a minimum of thirty credit hours in one of the biological and/or physical sciences.

Experience: None.

Notes:

1. Candidates may substitute one year of experience in public health investigation work for the thirty credit hours in one of the biological and/or physical sciences of the required education.

2. Candidates may substitute U.S. Armed Forces military service experience as a commissioned officer in Public Health Officer or Preventive Medical Officer classifications or Public Health Officer or Preventive Medical Officer specialty codes in the public health investigation field of work on a year-for-year basis for the required experience and education.

Class specifications are broad descriptions covering groups of positions used by various State departments and agencies.  Position descriptions maintained by the using department or agency specifically address the essential job functions of each position.

This is a Skilled Service classification in the State Personnel Management System.  All positions in this classification are Skilled Service positions.  Some positions in Skilled Service classifications may be designated Special Appointment in accordance with the State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 6-405, Annotated Code of Maryland.

This classification is assigned to Bargaining Unit E- Health Care Professional classes.  As provided by State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 3-102, special appointment, temporary, contractual, supervisory, managerial and confidential employees are excluded from collective bargaining.  Additionally, certain executive branch agencies are exempt from collective bargaining and all positions in those agencies are excluded from collective bargaining.

Employees in this classification are eligible to receive overtime compensation.  An employee who works more than the normal workweek is entitled to be compensated for that overtime as provided by State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 8-305.

This classification is one level in a Non-Competitive Promotion (NCP) series.  NCP promotions are promotions by which employees may advance in grade and class level from trainee to full performance levels in a classification series.  In order to be non-competitively promoted to the next level in a NCP series an employee must: 1) perform the main purpose of the class as defined in the Nature of Work section of the class specification; 2) receive the type of supervision defined in the class specification, and 3) meet the minimum qualifications of the classification.