Job Description

The Blood Safety, Hepatitis, STI and HIV (BSHSH) Division is the national centre for surveillance of hepatitis, HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in England. It is based in Colindale, north London.

The BSHSH Division aims to:

Describe trends in the incidence and prevalence of hepatitis, STIs and HIV, especially in important behavioural population sub-groups;



Describe trends in the incidence and prevalence of all infections transmissible through blood, tissue and organ donations;



Provide national reference and specialist microbiology and virology services, for public health, clinical and diagnostic purposes;



Monitor the outputs and effectiveness of hepatitis, STI and HIV prevention activities and programmes and support development of national policy;



Provide information for local needs assessment, service commissioning and evaluation, and to guide prevention activities aimed at reducing risk behaviours and interrupting infection transmission, including through blood, organ and tissue donation;



Investigate national and uncommon outbreaks, respond to international health alerts, and provide advice on the risks posed;



Train those working in blood safety and in hepatitis, STI and HIV surveillance, monitoring and prevention;



Lead and contribute to research in hepatitis, STI and HIV epidemiology, diagnostics, and infection prevention and control.



The Division is closely involved with the work of the NIHR-funded Health Protection Research Units, which are collaborative ventures involving UKHSA and academia. This post is within the Department of STIs and HIV within the Blood Safety, Hepatitis, STI & HIV Division. The primary function of this post is to coordinate and develop the collation and epidemiological analysis of HIV surveillance datasets. Under the supervision of senior scientific staff, the postholder will regularly extract, collate and validate surveillance data-sets and carry out epidemiological analyses to monitor trends, geographic distribution and risk factors. There may be an opportunity to undertake some qualitative work. The postholder will contribute to the delivery of surveillance and policy reports and to peer-reviewed publications.

The postholder will:

adopt a variety of public health and surveillance portfolios, develop and implement standardised data collection and analysis protocols, will identify data quality issues and will facilitate their resolution



ensure that data are collected and processed in accordance with relevant policies and standard operating procedures (SOPs) and will undertake regular assessments of data quality and completeness.



We pride ourselves as being an employer of choice, where Everyone Matters promoting equality of opportunity to actively encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce.



UKHSA ethos is to be an inclusive organisation for all our staff and stakeholders. To create, nurture and sustain an inclusive culture, where differences drive innovative solutions to meet the needs of our workforce and wider communities. We do this through celebrating and protecting differences by removing barriers and promoting equity and equality of opportunity for all.



Please visit our careers site for more information https://gov.uk/ukhsa/careers

Your key responsibilities will include:

Administrative Support



Be the first point of contact for internal and external callers/emails with ad hoc data and information requests, including public health specialists and academics, policy makers and members of the public, to supply the corresponding information where possible, and when needed escalate queries.



Organise meetings, prepare and distribute agendas and supporting documentation, and take minutes.



Data Management and Analysis



Ensure that data are collected and processed in accordance with relevant policies and standard operating procedures (SOPs).



Assess the quality of, and cleaning and analysing of data (including surveys).



Produce study updates and reports.



Prepare materials for presentations and publications.



Be aware of, and put into practice, all policies and procedures to maintain confidentiality of patient information. To ensure data confidentiality and security in compliance with relevant policies, the Data Protection Act, and other statutory requirements (Caldicott guardians).



Surveillance and Prevention Monitoring



Develop and utilise information and intelligence systems related to the projects to underpin public health action across the department and surveillance systems therein.



Have responsibility for the development and productivity of the information and intelligence system(s) related to the projects.



Undertake specialist and complex analyses of quantitative and/or qualitative datasets which will require selection of the best option from a range of possible solutions.



Analyse and evaluate quantitative and qualitative data and research evidence from a range of sources to inform decision making.



Receive, interpret, provide and advise on complex epidemiological and statistical information about the health of populations to the NHS, Department of Health and Social Care and others.



Specialist Advice and Evaluation



Communicate effectively and diplomatically research and other specialist information with colleagues from own or other disciplines and present findings at local, national and international meetings and conferences.



Write and/or contribute to national and local policy setting reports, as well as peer-reviewed publications in scientific journals, on the health of the population.



Research and Development



Undertake literature reviews, evaluative research surveys, audits and other research as required.



Teaching and Training



Assist in teaching and training courses run at Centre for Infectious Disease Surveillance and Control, Colindale and outside, by producing presentation materials and assist in HIV lectures.



The duties/responsibilities listed above describe the post as it is at present and is not intended to be exhaustive. The Job holder is expected to accept reasonable alterations and additional tasks of a similar level that may be necessary.



Essential criteria



Educated to degree level in Science, Public health or Statistics or equivalent experience working in public health



Scientific research work experience, particularly in public health



Data management, cleaning, handling, analysis and reporting



Interpreting and evaluating epidemiological data



Preparing scientific reports and presentations



Good working knowledge of Microsoft packages, including Access, Word, PowerPoint and Excel



Use of statistical software (e.g. STATA, SPSS, SAS, or R) and graphics software



Communicate and negotiate accurately, succinctly and in a friendly manner with a wide range of health, IT and academic professionals, as well as the general public



Prioritise and co-ordinate own workload in order to meet tight deadlines



Work well on own initiative as well as in a team



Identify and deal with problems in a calm, efficient and timely manner



Communicate and document methods clearly and succinctly



Have a clear and organised approach to work, and produce accurate and consistent work



Maintain required levels of confidentiality



An understanding of and commitment to equality of opportunity and good working relationships



Selection process details



This vacancy will be assessed using a competency-based framework which will assess your knowledge and experience, and/or skills and abilities outlined in the essential criteria.



You will be required to complete an application form. You will be assessed on the 15 essential criteria listed, and this will be in the form of a :



Application form ( ' Employer/ Activity history' section on the application)



1200 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.



The Application form and supporting statement will be marked together.

Longlisting :

In the event of a large number of applications we will longlist into 3 piles of:



Meets all essential criteria



Meets some essential criteria



Meets no essential criteria



Piles Meets all essential criteria will be moved through to the shortlisting stage.

Shortlisting:

In the event of a large number of applications we will shortlist on:



Educated to degree level in Science, Public health or Statistics or equivalent experience working in public health



Scientific research work experience, particularly in public health



Data management, cleaning, handling, analysis and reporting



Please do not exceed 1200 words. We will not consider any words over and above this number. If you are successful at this stage, you will progress to an interview. Unfortunately, late applications will not be considered.



Please note you will not be able to upload your CV. You must complete the application form in as much detail as possible. Please do not email us your CV.



Feedback will not be provided at this stage.

Stage 2:

Interview (competency based)



You will be invited to a (single) remote interview.



Knowledge, experience, skills & abilities will be tested at interview



Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.



Location



This role is being offered as hybrid working based at our Scientific Campus in Colindale.



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).



If based at one of our scientific campuses, you will be required to have a minimum of a Counter Terrorism Check security vetting check as a minimum. For meaningful National Security Vetting checks to be carried out individuals need to have lived in the UK for a sufficient period of time. You should normally have been resident in the United Kingdom for the last 3 years as the role requires Counter Terrorism Check (CTC) clearance. In exceptional circumstances UK residency less than the outlined periods may not necessarily bar you from gaining national security vetting and applicants should contact the Vacancy Holder/Recruiting Manager listed in the advert for further advice



Eligibility Criteria



Open to all external applicants (anyone) from outside the Civil Service (including by definition internal applicants).



Security Clearance Level Requirement



Successful candidates must pass a disclosure and barring security check.