Public Health Officer (Evidence & Evaluation)

This is an exciting opportunity to join our skilled and resilient shared public health service working across the three neighbouring local authorities of Bedford Borough, Central Bedfordshire, and Milton Keynes, serving a vibrant and diverse population of 760,000.

The health and wellbeing of people is generally good, but significant inequalities persist across both urban and rural areas, and there are ample opportunities to make a difference.

You will join our strong Public Health Evidence and Intelligence team. The team is regarded as a specialist team responsible for providing high quality, evidence based insight that drives decision making. The team leads on the production of the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA).

Main duties of the job
We are looking for a Public Health Officer-Evidence and Evaluation to join our team and support our programme of JSNA. The role will involve developing innovative analytical products to inform our JSNA, help align JSNA with system wide population health management tools and techniques in partnership with others. Support the ongoing development of the JSNA, ensuring it is responsive to the needs of the residents and health and care commissioners and informs priority setting. You will have an excellent report writing skills with the ability to write for a range of audiences, extract, analyse complex data from a range of sources and maintain effective working relationships with a wide range of people.

About us
We can offer flexible working hours to help maintain work-life balance and 27 days annual leave (rising to 32 days after 5 years local government service) amongst other benefits.

Job description
Job responsibilities
JOB PURPOSE:

Public health has a key role to provide the evidence and intelligence to the local system needed to ensure effective commissioning and delivery of public services, the best use of available resources, and the best health and wellbeing outcomes for local people. The post-holder will specialist public health skills for key public health functions.

As part of a shared public health team that works across three unitary authorities and the Integrated Care Board, the post holder will work closely with the Population Health Evidence & Intelligence Team to provide population health expertise as part of the Core Offer to the Integrated Care Board, and coordinate the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) process across all three local authorities.

MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

In order to contribute to efforts to improve health and wellbeing, and reduce health inequalities the post holder will:

Coordinate the JSNA process, employing project management skills and engaging local authority and ICB officers in the development of chapters.

Use public health expertise to develop Health Needs Assessments, JSNA chapters, Director of Public Health Reports, Health Impact Assessments, Health Equity Audits, health and care service evaluations and systematic evidence reviews to inform commissioning decisions, strategic planning and service improvement.

Access and appraise evidence gained through systematic methods and through engagement with the wider research community (A4.1); critique published and unpublished research, synthesise the evidence and draw appropriate conclusions (A4.2).

Appraise and advise on global, national or local strategies in relation to the public's health and health inequalities (B1.1), including the Right Care programme.

Specify measurable performance indicators to ensure quality provision and delivery of desired outcomes (B3.2).

Quality assure and audit services and interventions to control risks and improve their quality and effectiveness (A5.5).

Interpret data and communicate sometimes complex information and concepts (including health outcomes, inequalities and life expectancy) to a diversity of audiences using different methods (A1.2 and C2.2).

Write and contribute to reports which make evidence-based recommendations to improve health & wellbeing, care & quality and achieve best value, and to reduce health inequalities.

Develop links with public health and healthcare networks, academic centres and Public Health England to ensure that regional and national guidance, evidence and strategic priorities are reflected in local plans where appropriate.

Prioritise a complex and demanding workload, meeting tight deadlines.

DECISIONS MADE:

You will:

Have the ability to work cross-directorate and across other agencies and voluntary organisations.

Receive annual appraisals by Public Health Manager (Population Health, Evidence & Intelligence). Detailed objectives will be agreed with the Public Health Manager.