Community Health Specialist

Austin Community College; Fairfax (VA); On-site; USD 50,000 - 70,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Supportive team environment

Continuous learning culture

Job summary

A public health department in Virginia seeks a community health educator to provide outreach and health promotion services. The role involves working with diverse communities to implement health education programs, collaborating with partners, and evaluating community health initiatives. Candidates must possess a relevant bachelor's degree and have experience in health education and public engagement. The position is fully in-person, requiring flexible hours including evenings and weekends.

Qualifications

• Graduation from an accredited college with a bachelor's degree in health education or related field.
• Minimum one year of experience in health-related work with public contact.

Responsibilities

• Provide health promotion and prevention education to diverse communities.
• Coordinate with outreach teams and community partners.
• Deliver health education presentations in the community.

Skills

Knowledge of program development

Knowledge of communities and cultural diversities

Ability to conduct screening and education

Effective communication skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in health education

Master's degree in public health

Tools

Microsoft Office Suite

Job description

Are you looking for a job that offers you...

• Supportive team environment
• Dynamic orientation
• Opportunity to make a difference through health education, health promotion and disease prevention; collaborative engagement with community partners to address public health priorities; and a work culture that promotes continuous learning culture?

The Fairfax County Health Department is the largest public health department in Virginia, serving 1.2 million residents from diverse ethnic, cultural, and economic backgrounds throughout Fairfax County. With more than 100 years of leadership in the public health field, we are committed to protecting, promoting, and improving the health and quality of life for all in our community. This position provides community outreach, health promotion and prevention education to ethnically diverse communities, non-profit organizations, hard to reach populations, small businesses and faith communities. Duties and responsibilities are carried out in coordination with a Community Health and Engagement team that includes an outreach manager, outreach supervisor, community health specialists, and other agency staff, and in collaboration with a wide array of community partners. Responsible for implementing and participating in evaluation of agency strategies used to leverage critical community assets in providing population-based interventions aimed at addressing root cause and other social determinants of health known to negatively impact community health.
Note: The successful candidate will be working evenings and weekends on a regular basis. This position is fully in person and is not eligible for telework.

Required Knowledge Skills and Abilities

• Knowledge of program development, implementation and elementary evaluation;
• Knowledge of communities being served, cultural diversities and resources available;
• Knowledge of the social, economic and environmental factors that increase an individual's and community’s risk for chronic disease (e.g. communicable disease, stressor diseases such as cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes and asthma);
• Knowledge of disease management/health promotion models that target the treatment of disease in symptomatic or at-risk individuals;
• Ability to conduct screening, monitoring and education, coordination of care (i.e., physicians, hospitals, laboratories, and pharmacies) and evidence-based practice guidelines to identify and treat disease conditions before they advance to an acute or chronic stage;
• Ability to develop, collect and analyze outcome data to evaluate effectiveness of disease management/health promotion programs;
• Ability to plan, develop and/or deliver health education programs to specific target populations including health promotion, wellness and prevention programs;
• Ability to work independently and deliver health education presentations within the community;
• Ability to work predominantly with adults, applying learning concepts;
• Ability to work with sub-group of the community to organize and implement health education services;
• Ability to communicate effectively through the use of verbal, written and electronic means.

Employment Standards

Minimum Qualifications

Graduation from an accredited four-year college or university with a bachelor's degree in health education, human services, or a directly related field; plus one year of experience in communicable and/or chronic disease education, investigation or other types of health-related work involving considerable public contact.

Certificates and Licenses Required

• Valid driver's license
• Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) (Required within 60 days)
• AED (Required within 60 days)

Necessary Special Requirements

The appointee to this position will be required to complete a criminal background check, a Child Protective Services Registry check, and a driving record check to the satisfaction of the employer. Additional Work Schedule Requirements: Flexible work schedule will be required to work evening and/or weekend community meetings or events to and/or be on-call.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in public health or related field of study.
• Two or more years of experience designing, implementing and contributing to evaluating community-based health programs in culturally and age-diverse populations.
• Experience developing and presenting health education topics to a multicultural population.
• Two or more years of experience with community development and capacity building activities an asset.
• Ability to develop and maintain effective working relationships with a variety of individuals, such as community members and building partnerships with businesses, nonprofits and faith-based groups.
• One or more years of experience with managing, implementing, and developing comprehensive outreach programs for the public, preferably in health promotion and health access services.
• One or more years of experience working independently.
• Must communicate effectively through the use of verbal, written and electronic means.
• Advanced knowledge of basic Microsoft Office Suite applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook).

Physical Requirements

Job is generally sedentary in nature, and requires walking, standing, sitting (for long periods of time), and kneeling, reaching, bending, climbing stairs. May be required to lift or carry up to 25 lbs. as required for the position. Uses hands to grasp, handle, or feel. Visual acuity is required to read data from paper and on a computer monitor or other electronic device; ability to operate keyboard driven equipment and computer and use of touchscreen. Position frequently communicates and must be able to exchange accurate information with others verbally and in writing. Ability to drive a motor vehicle. Generally, work in an office environment may occasionally be required to perform job duties outside of the typical office setting. All duties performed with or without reasonable accommodations.

Selection Procedure

Panel interview and may include exercise.

Fairfax County is home to a highly diverse population, with a significant number of residents speaking languages other than English at home (including Spanish, Asian/Pacific Islander, Indo-European, and many others). We encourage candidates who are bilingual in English and another language to apply for this opportunity.

Fairfax County Government prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, age, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetics, political affiliation, or military status in the recruitment, selection, and hiring of its workforce.

Reasonable accommodations are available to persons with disabilities during application and/or interview processes per the Americans with Disabilities Act. TTY 703-222-7314. [e-mail] EEO/AA/TTY.