RESEARCH SCIENTIST/ENGINEER 4

As a UW employee, you have a unique opportunity to change lives on our campuses, in our state and around the world. UW employees offer their boundless energy, creative problem solving skills and dedication to build stronger minds and a healthier world.

UW faculty and staff also enjoy outstanding benefits, professional growth opportunities and unique resources in an environment noted for diversity, intellectual excitement, artistic pursuits and natural beauty. 

The WWAMI Rural Health Research Center (RHRC) has an outstanding opportunity for a Research Scientist/Engineer 4 to support its expanding research efforts in rural health research. The WWAMI RHRC, where this position is located, is housed in the UW Department of Family Medicine, which is recognized nationally and internationally for its excellent programs in clinical care, teaching, and research. UW faculty and staff enjoy outstanding benefits, professional growth opportunities and unique resources in an environment noted for diversity, intellectual excitement, artistic pursuits, and natural beauty. We are interested in candidates who are committed to developing and supporting diversity and inclusion in the work and learning environment.

This position will support a variety of research projects in the WWAMI RHRC. The focus of most of these studies is on rural health issues.

The position will primarily support the evaluation of the Technical Assistance for the Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP). This includes leading the research operations related to specific RCORP cohorts of grantees. The WWAMI RHRC is conducting an evaluation of the technical assistance provided by JBS International to the following cohorts of grantees: Implementation (I, II, III), MAT expansion, Neonatal abstinence, and Psychostimulant. These evaluations will inform the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) on the outcomes, benefits and challenges grantees faced and how the Technical Assistance provided addressed these. These activities aim to inform policies and program particulars to ensure optimal use of federal dollars to address the opioid epidemic.

The research involves program evaluation as well as the collection/assembly and analysis of both primary (e.g., via surveys, interviews, focus groups) and secondary (e.g., federally requested data, PIMS administrative data, claims) datasets. This position will collaborate in designing evaluation approaches, research studies, data collection, assembly of data for analysis, analysis of quantitative and qualitative data, interpretation of findings, and creation of graphic and narrative descriptions of research findings. This position will be responsible for contributing, in collaboration with other scientists, to presentations, reports, and manuscripts that describe research findings.

The Research Scientist will work in a collegial and collaborative environment with staff and faculty from the UW Family Medicine Research Section and other groups within the Department of Family Medicine, requiring excellent communication and collaboration skills. This individual must be able to work independently with collaboration on assigned research. The Research Scientist’s direct supervisor will be Holly Andrilla, Deputy Director of the WWAMI RHRC.

The Research Scientist must be able to work independently and collaboratively with a variety of faculty investigators, research scientists and staff members across the WWAMI RHRC. The responsibilities of this position include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Co-leading teams in the design and implementation of research projects;
• Managing multiple projects by providing guidance and direction to project staff and implementing sophisticated project management techniques;
• Contributing substantially to the development of project goals and objectives;
• Providing ideas to improve organizational efficiency within the WWAMI RHRC;
• Mentoring junior staff in the development of technical and project management skills;
• Monitoring the work of others and redirecting efforts to achieve project objectives or enhance quality;
• Fostering relationships with internal and external research colleagues and developing a network of collaborators;
• Identifying and developing new funding sources, including supporting current collaborations and future proposals to potential grant partners;
• Developing new data visualization products and providing guidance to team members on data visualization best practices;
• Overseeing the creation of quantitative and/or qualitative data collection instruments;
• Conducting mixed-methods research;
• Assembling, cleaning, managing, and analyzing qualitative and quantitative datasets;
• Acting as lead author or contributing author, depending on the project, for reports, peer-reviewed articles and policy briefs, and presentations describing research findings;
• Presenting portions or all of research findings to internal and external audiences;
• Identifying problems and technical issues that affect project goals and timelines and identifying appropriate solutions;
• Contributing to positive co-worker/customer/investigator relationships through efficient interaction on current grants/projects.
• Some travel may be required.

Requirements:

• Master’s degree in a health-related field, such as (but not limited to) health sciences, public health, public policy, medical sociology, biostatistics and medical geography,
• At least 5 years of experience developing and conducting health-related research and/or evaluation including data analysis;
• Demonstrated ability to work efficiently and independently;
• Excellent English writing skills;
• Excellent time management skills;
• Excellent attention to details;
• Excellent organizational skills;
• Knowledge of a statistical software package (e.g., SAS, STATA, R, SPSS, ATLAS.ti, NVivo, or similar) and analytic methods for use with both quantitative and qualitative research;
• Proficiency in standard office word processing, graphics and spreadsheet software; and
• Interpersonal and communication skills needed to work with a multidisciplinary team of faculty and research scientist investigators and research staff.
• Equivalent education/experience will substitute for all minimum qualifications except when there are legal requirements, such as a license/certification/registration

Desired 

• Knowledge of and/or direct experience with health workforce, including rural health research and substance use disorders (SUD);
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• Experience engaging with stakeholders in rural health care delivery and SUD;
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• Familiarity with policies related to the rural health workforce;
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• Demonstrated experience with both technical scientific writing and preparing concise summaries of research findings for lay audiences;
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• Experience creating effective data visualizations using Tableau or similar programs.

Application Process:
The application process for UW positions may include completion of a variety of online assessments to obtain additional information that will be used in the evaluation process.  These assessments may include Workforce Authorization, Cover Letter and/or others.  Any assessments that you need to complete will appear on your screen as soon as you select “Apply to this position”. Once you begin an assessment, it must be completed at that time; if you do not complete the assessment you will be prompted to do so the next time you access your “My Jobs” page. If you select to take it later, it will appear on your "My Jobs" page to take when you are ready. Please note that your application will not be reviewed, and you will not be considered for this position until all required assessments have been completed.