The student will be assigned to the Arkansas Department of Health (ADH), Outbreak Prevention and Response Branch, Zoootic Disease Section while enrolled in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Epidemiology Elective Program (EEP). The EEP is an eight-week elective rotation to introduce medical and veterinary students to applied epidemiology and public health. Students learn by gaining hands-on experience and mentorship from subject matter experts in public health.
Assignments may involve:
- conducting surveillance of a disease, injury, or other health condition,
- collecting and analyzing health data to identify new risk factors for disease,
- evaluating the effectiveness of program prevention strategies to help inform future implementation,
- assisting CDC’s Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) officers and other public health professionals to investigate an outbreak, and
- contributing to scientific reports, publications, guidelines, and communication materials.
The student will be supervised by the Arkansas State Public Health Veterinarian, who oversees the Zoonotic Disease Section, consisting of two zoonotic epidemiologists, one part-time public health veterinarian, one CDC Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer (EISO) who is a PhD-trained epidemiologist, and one CDC Career Epidemiology Field Officer (CEFO) who is a pediatric medical (MD) epidemiologist. The Zoonotic Disease Section focuses on One Health and belongs to the Outbreak Prevention and Response Branch (OPR), which houses other epidemiologists, communicable disease nurse specialists, and health program specialists who focus on communicable and vaccine-preventable diseases, healthcare-associated infections, multi-drug resistant organisms, antibiotic stewardship, and infection prevention and control. ADH will provide all equipment needed, which includes a laptop, docking station, monitors, phone, and necessary office supplies. Additionally, all required safety and personal protective equipment will be provided on an as-needed basis.
The student will be expected to work approximately eight hours per day, Monday through Friday, or an equivalent of that equaling at least 40 hours per week in either hybrid (partly remote) or completely in-person status. The student will not be required to work on state-observed holidays or weekends, although participation in after-hours outbreak response activities will be encouraged if an emergent outbreak or epidemic is identified.
The student will be responsible for finding and paying for their own living arrangements. ADH staff can provide suggestions upon request.