Senior Medical Epidemiologist at CAMRIS International

CAMRIS International is seeking a Senior Medical Epidemiologist & Infection Control Resident Advisor to provide support for biosurveillance activities conducted by the NAMRU-3 primarily in West Africa.  These activities include the diagnosis of acute febrile illnesses, multidrug resistant (MDR) tuberculosis, MDR bacteria associated with wound and surgical site infections, blood stream (sepsis) infections, and enteric infections. This acquisition will also provide support for infectious disease research activities conducted by the NAMRU-3 Ghana Detachment.  The NAMRU-3 Ghana is involved in the diagnosis of many respiratory, arboviral and hemorrhagic fever viral diseases.  The program has extended collaborative projects with many West African countries.  Moreover, the NAMRU-3 Ghana Detachment assists other NAMRU-3 programs including the Global Disease Detection Research Program (GDDRP), Vector Biology Research Program (VBRP) and the Bacterial Parasitic Disease Research Program (BPDRP) project.

Responsibilities

• Assist the NAMRU-3 Ghana Detachment’s staff in research projects conducted at the study sites throughout Ghana and West Africa including the development, implementation, and progress of surveillance, epidemiology, infection control, and other clinical and basic science research;
• Be responsible for facilitating field activities at study sites throughout Ghana and West Africa;
• Be responsible for coordinating and communicating with different levels and teams at collaborating institutes throughout Ghana and West Africa;
• Be responsible for organizing and supervising appropriate training for non-governmental staff associated with research projects;
• Be responsible for providing a final report related to any training provided through the contract and monthly progress reports of all activities;
• Perform monitoring visits to study sites to follow up on study progress and assure ethical performance of research;
• Assisting NAMRU-3 staff in the drafting of study documents including protocols, letters, reports, manuscripts, abstracts, and memoranda related to coordination and execution of study protocols;
• Create initial draft and/or review packages to be approved by the Government research protocol Principal Investigators or by the NMRC IRB before submission to the Office of Research Administration (ORA) of the Naval Medical Research Center (NMRC) Institutional Review Board (IRB) and other local IRBs;
• Be responsible for tracking and reporting laboratory results from study participants/subjects, and maintaining study regulatory files (e.g. protocols, correspondence, IRB forms, approvals, and all related material) and copies of case report forms;
• Format draft manuscripts for submission to specific publications, subject to final Government approval; this requires researching the specific format of tables, references, etc. for each journal and placing the manuscript in the appropriate format; Proof read documents for grammatical and spelling accuracy and preparation in appropriate format;
• Support research operations of NAMRU-3 via remote communications and through periods of on-site work at other NAMRU-3 research sites as needed.
• Maintain the confidentiality of the information in files when accessed;
• Participate in NAMRU-3 meetings as needed.
• Report to the COR in accordance with conditions mandated under the Foreign Affairs Manual and DoD Regulations; support and communicate directly with the Director of the NAMRU-3 Ghana Detachment as needed, including additional duties within scope as assigned.

Qualifications

• This position requires M.D. or doctor of public health (Ph.D.) degree with completion of formal graduate medical training and 10 years of related experience and work in developing countries.
• Experience in scientific and manuscript writing.
• Ability to work both independently and on a team in an interdisciplinary environment.
• Experience in research collaborations in an international setting along with both USG and host nation agencies in public health research.
• Ability to monitor the surveillance progress and design studies.
• Proficiency in word-processing, spreadsheet, basic statistics, database and presentation.
• Fluency in oral and written English.
• Good communication skills.
• Ability to prepare and write regular reports.
• Ability to communicate and work effectively with colleagues at different levels of the organization.