Public Health Officer / Senior Public Health Officer (Healthcare Epidemiology)

[What the role is]

The Senior/Public Health Officer supports the Assistant/Deputy/Director in conducting investigations into disease outbreaks. The role also involves formulating and implementing disease prevention and control strategies to protect the health of Singaporeans by reducing the burden of disease infections through effective rapid response and outbreak management, surveillance programmes, policymaking, and prevention programmes for healthcare institutions and facilities in the long-term care sector.

You will be working in a fast-paced and dynamic environment that would require the ability to manage multiple priorities and stakeholders at the same time.

[What you will be working on]

You will be performing key day-to-day functions within the Healthcare Epidemiology unit of NICHE as follow:

• Conduct disease epidemiological investigations, propose control measures to break the chain of transmission in healthcare institutions and facilities in the long-term care sector.

• Implement and evaluate control measures

• Engaging and collaborating with relevant government agencies and stakeholders on policies to control the spread of infectious diseases

• Prepare epidemiological reports on disease situations, including regular updates, to management

• Conduct after action reviews when indicated

Part of the work will require the officer to be onsite (e.g., hospitals, nursing homes, and MSF homes) for outbreak investigations, where necessary. To protect the staff, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) training and the necessary immunisations will be necessary prior to deployment.

[What we are looking for]

Job responsibilities

You will be:

• Assisting in the formulation of evidence-based policies to control the spread of infectious diseases, evaluation of the effectiveness of the current controls and measures in place today, and recommend improvements to disease control strategies based on evolving epidemiology of diseases and analysis of current disease control programmes and international practices for healthcare institutions and facilities in the long-term care sector.
• Engaging and collaborating with the sector leads e.g., MOH and MSF, to formulate, implement, monitor and review policies and standard operating procedures for control of disease outbreaks. You will be working closely with the key stakeholders to align strategy, share information, review and refine processes, and maintain high-quality surveillance data for this sector.
• Leading disease epidemiological investigations, identify possible sources of transmission, propose control measures to break the chain of transmission, recommend control measures, and assist with communications to sector lead, relevant stakeholders and the public.
• Prepare disease-specific epidemiological situation reports, including regular updates to CDA and MOH Senior Management. Prepare professional inputs, liners, FAQs, and replies for external queries including from media, other government agencies.
• Be the point of contact to stakeholders and their partners for public health matters.
• Providing admin support for meetings, assisting in the preparation of agenda, meeting materials, and note-taking.
• Crisis communication during public health events: Communicate critical information to stakeholders including healthcare providers, the public, and media during disease outbreaks to ensure timely, coordinated, and effective responses while managing rapid and accurate dissemination of information under time pressure.
• Interagency coordination: Regularly coordinate with government agencies, healthcare institutions and internal health bodies to align priorities and approaches, ensuring seamless data exchange and resource sharing.
• Public information and education: Consistently provide the public and external agencies with up-to-date and accurate information about disease prevention and control measures, making complex information understandable and fostering public trust and compliance.

Job Requirements

• Tertiary qualification, preferably good honours in a life science discipline; nursing background; or related disciplines e.g., bioengineering, allied health.
• Postgraduate degree in Public Health or Epidemiology or equivalent would be an advantage
• 2-3 years experience in public health would be an advantage
• Analytical mindset
• Ability to work under pressure and simultaneously on different projects
• Excellent organisational skills and resourcefulness
• Good inter-personal and communication skills
• Willing to work beyond office hours, especially during outbreaks
• Willing to continuously keep up-to-date on new developments in the communicable diseases field

As part of the shortlisting process for this role, candidates may be required to complete a medical declaration and/or undergo further assessment.