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The UW Department of Medicine's Division of Allergy & Infectious Diseases (AID) has an outstanding opportunity open for a Temporary Research Interviewer in the Syringe Service Programs .

Position Purpose:

Syringe service programs (SSP) are an evidence-based intervention for reducing HIV risk among people who inject drugs (PWID) and are an entry point for PWID to access treatment for substance use disorders, other medical care, and social work services. In the wake of the current opioid epidemic and resurgence of methamphetamine use, SSPs are increasingly recognized as one of the key places to reach PWID for preventive services. There is currently no coordinated system for monitoring and evaluating SSPs in the United States, and many SSPs do not have the capacity to gather data needed to evaluate their operations and impact.

The Department of Medicine’s Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (AID) was awarded a cooperative agreement award from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to establish a national monitoring and evaluation system for SSPs (Component 2 of CDC-RFA-PS19-1909, https://www.cdc.gov/nchhstp/funding/announcements/ps19-1909/index.html). One of the primary projects of this award is Project NEXUS, a national survey of people who use drugs, which will be conducted in partnership with up to 4 SSPs across the US. The University of Washington will be the coordinating center responsible for developing the survey protocol, overseeing project implementation at each SSP, managing data collection (which will be conducted remotely by a UW based team of interviewers), and analyzing and disseminating survey findings.

We are hiring for a Project NEXUS Interviewer to assist in the day-to-day data remote collection operations of Project NEXUS. The Project NEXUS Interviewer will work closely with the Project Coordinator, and NEXUS co-investigators to remotely implement the NEXUS survey at individual SSP sites.

Position Complexities:

The Project NEXUS Interviewer will assist in the rapid remote implementation of a detailed health behavior surveillance project of people who use drugs accessing SSPs. This position will be a key support to the project coordination team and work directly partner staff at up to 4 SSPs. Survey participants will be people who use drugs (primarily PWID) and the position will require previous experience working with this population. This positition will be responsible for supporting SSP participant registration and enrollment, REDCap data collection, aiding in the refinement project protocols, and data quality tracking. This position requires the ability to work independently with minimal oversight and the skills to prioritize activities and multi-task to complete multiple scopes of work.

The position will work closely with NEXUS SSPs to conduct high-quality and professional remote interviews with PWUD populations across all 4 enrollment SSPs. The additional activities supported by this position will be highly varied and include (but not be limited to): assisting in site protocol trainings and providing real-time support to SSPs, assisting with training of SSP NEXUS interview monitors.

Impact:

The UW is strongly committed to developing domestic partnerships related to the prevention of infectious diseases (HIV, viral hepatitis) and other health consequences related to substance use disorders. This project is housed in the Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, headed by Anna Wald, MD. The Project Manager will represent this $1+ million survey with local and national partners and make a significant contribution toward meeting the project’s goals.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Day-to-day data collection operations of the Project NEXUS survey, including:

Providing overall support to Project NEXUS data collection at up to 4 SSPs during protocol implementation [90% of time]

Work in coordination with NEXUS team members to refine and execute data collection protocols

Provide feedback on project procedures and methodology to continue improving and streamlining the project protocols

Prepare and maintain required and up-to-date interview materials in preparation for participant survey interviews

Aid SSPs in the recruitment and enrollment of project participants, walk participants through the project permissions process and assist in troubleshooting with SSP site staff during enrollment

Partner with SSP interview monitors to successfully connect participants to remote interviewers

Conduct remote survey eligibility screening with potential participants and communicate eligibility status

Conduct remote in-depth, standardized survey interviews with project participants in a professional manner and strictly following project data collection protocols

Complete detailed participant project records using REDCap

Verify accuracy of information entered into REDCap and report any discrepancies and data entry errors using established reporting and tracking systems

Participate in ongoing evaluation to identify any additional training needs and potential survey tool functionality or administration concerns

Participate in Project NEXUS trainings and required Public Health trainings

Day-to-day Project NEXUS protocol implementation support [10% of time]

Real-time troubleshooting REDCap data entry issues with SSP interview monitor and testing partners

Participate in standing project implementation meetings with SSPs to discuss project protocol, interviews and enrollment site experiences

Meet with the NEXUS team once a week to discuss NEXUS interviews

Present NEXUS team updates and project progress at weekly CDC meetings

Minimum Qualifications:

A Bachelor's degree in any science field and at least 1 year experience to include:

Familiarity with the principles of harm reduction

Prior experience working with people who use drugs, syringe service programs, and/or other harm reduction programs

Prior experience conducting survey and/or interviews with vulnerable populations about sensitive topics areas

Following and implementing strict data collection protocols

Other requirements needed to perform the job satisfactorily include:

Knowledge of infectious diseases that disproportionately affect PWID, including HIV/AIDS and viral hepatitis

Exceptional organizational skills and attention to detail

Excellent judgment and interpersonal skills with proven ability for effective cross-cultural communication

Ability to anticipate, recognize and resolve problems

Ability to work in a complex environment with multiple priorities and short deadlines; ability to manage several multidimensional activities simultaneously

Aptitude for learning new skills and technologies

High proficiency in Zoom, REDCap, Slack and MS Office Suite (including Word, Excel, Power Point, and Outlook), in addition to the ability to quickly learn and apply new or unfamiliar software

Desired Qualifications:

2-3 years of experience working with SSPs and/or PWUD populations

Prior experience conducting health survey interviews following a strict protocol

Prior experience working with vulnerable populations and building rapport

Working Conditions:

This is a full-time position (40 hours per week) and will primarily work during regular business hours. However, the position will likely need to work some time outside of regular business hours during data collection periods to accommodate enrollment sites located in different time zones and with varying enrollment schedules such as evenings and weekends, as needed. This is most likely to occur after January 2023. This position will primarily be able to work remotely.
This position is funded for One Year (through July 31, 2023) . There is the possibility that it will extend beyond that, but that will be dependent on project needs and funding.



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 Work 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.

Applicants considered for this position will be required to disclose if they are the subject of any substantiated findings or current investigations related to sexual misconduct at their current employment and past employment. Disclosure is required under Washington state law.