Environmental Statistician ORISE Position, CDC
Category : Alumni
This position is within the Geospatial Research, Analysis and Services Program (GRASP), a program within the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). GRASP is responsible for geospatial science, analysis, visualization, and technology as applied to environmental health, site-specific exposure, infectious & chronic disease, injury, and emergency preparedness & response. GRASP works with ATSDR, other CDC centers/institutes/offices, state/local health organizations, other federal agencies, international governments, academia, and advocacy groups.
GRASP OVERVIEW
The mission of GRASP is to provide leadership and expertise in the application of the concepts, methods, and tools of geography and geospatial information science to public health research and practice. The objectives of GRASP are to:
- Research and analyze the geospatial trends and patterns associated with environmental health, infectious & chronic disease, injury, and emergency preparedness & response.
- Geospatially enable ATSDR scientists and systems with data, consulting, technology, & training.
- Collaborate with scientists at the CDC/ATSDR and among our public health partners to address environmental health, infectious & chronic disease, injury, and emergency preparedness & response issues.
- Contribute to a vibrant geospatial community among public health professionals.
- Embrace, leverage and promote technology.
POSITION OVERVIEW
As an environmental statistician with GIS experience, the incumbent will provide support and expertise to GRASP and its research partners in the statistical analysis of spatial data. As an environmental statistician, the incumbent will also provide support to GRASP’s Geospatial Epidemiology and Applied Research (GEAR) unit. Specific duties and responsibilities associated with this role are outlined below.
(1) Statistical Consulting & Review
a. Respond to and support internal GRASP statistical requests as they are submitted
b. Serve as a primary environmental statistician on GRASP-supported projects by providing analytic expertise and statistical support to GRASP research partners
c. Review interpretations of results from statistical analyses to ensure findings are communicated clearly and accurately based on the analysis that was completed
(2) Data Analysis, Reporting, and Management
a. Determine the most suitable sampling collection methodologies for field operations
b. Develop analytic plans and strategies for the analysis of spatial data
c. Clean and prepare data for analysis
d. Perform quality checks on data and results to ensure accuracy and consistency
e. Coordinate flow of data from data sources, to data storage (e.g., SQL database), and data use
f. Conduct spatial analyses, including spatial autocorrelation, interpolation, cluster, and regression analysis, and maintain strong documentation
g. Prepare reports of scientific data, including tables, charts, and other data visualizations
(3) Geospatial Services
a. Use geoprocessing software to explore, describe, visualize, and analyze spatial relationships thereby enabling CDC/ATSDR to better understand geospatial factors relevant to environmental exposure, infectious & chronic disease, injury, and emergency preparedness & response
b. Expand knowledge in the use of GIS and public health methods, software, tools, and data
(4) Study Design & Research
a. Provide strategic counsel, guidance, and recommendations to project partners for designing ecological and epidemiological studies
b. Contribute to original epidemiological research
(5) Project Management and Coordination
a. Coordinate with GRASP colleagues on research, project needs, and analyses
b. As needed, organize and coordinate research projects
KEYS TO SUCCESS
- Strong collaborative skills and ability to communicate with a multidisciplinary staff
- Strong quantitative skills, which may include proficiency in SAS, R, ArcGIS, SaTScan, GeoDa, Power BI, Tableau, and SQL Server or other relational database management systems
- GIS skills, data analysis, and data management
- Strong attention to detail and documentation of work
- Experience and professional interest in environmental exposure and health effects
- Experience and professional interest in electronic health records and analysis of large public use datasets, including environmental, socioeconomic, demographic and health outcome data
HOW TO APPLY
1. Provide resumé to Danielle Sharpe (oyv7 [at] cdc [dot] gov), with CC to Andrew (Andy) Dent (aed5 [at] cdc [dot] gov) and Shannon Graham (buu9 [at] cdc [dot] gov). Use subject line GRASP/ORISE.
2. Follow-up questions should be addressed to the persons identified above.
