Associate Director of Clinical Sciences

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This Associate Director of Clinical Sciences is essential to advancing CHAMPS program goals by providing scientific and clinical leadership across three operational areas: Pathology Services, Clinical Cause of Death Determination (DeCoDe), and Laboratory Science. The role involves directing quality assurance for tissue sampling and DeCoDe results, resolving data quality issues, and offering clinical guidance to sites. It also supports data analysis and manuscript development, leads special scientific studies, and prepares reports for leadership and donors.

In addition to technical expertise, the role includes managing the CHAMPS clinical team, supervising staff, and supporting lab and diagnostic experts. The position tracks performance, fosters collaboration across units, and represents CHAMPS at scientific meetings. It plays a key leadership role in strategic planning and implementation, ensuring effective communication and coordination across the program office.

Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) is an initiative of the Gates Foundation that started in 2015. The goal is to identify and track definitive causes of stillbirths and child deaths through robust community engagement, mortality surveillance, diagnostic and laboratory innovation, and rapid, open access to data. CHAMPS now operates in nine sites in African and South Asian countries with a high burden of child deaths. In these sites, CHAMPS teams quickly identify stillbirths and child deaths, and with the parents' consent, collect specimens that undergo thorough examination, review medical records, and interview families about what happened. The thousands of data elements from these investigations come together to provide an accurate pictureof each death.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:

• This position plays a critical role in supporting the programmatic goals, fostering collaboration, and ensuring the successful execution of CHAMPS activities across three core operational areas: PathologyServices, Clinical Cause of Death Determination (DeCoDe), and Laboratory Science.

Scientific and Clinical Expertise (50%):

• Directs and manages the quality assurance system for minimally invasive tissue sampling (MITS) and DeCoDe results for the CHAMPS network
• Oversees and manages processes to resolve data quality issues, working in collaboration with sites, the Senior Epidemiologist, and the Informatics Business Unit Director
• Provides clinical expertise and guidance to sites on the DeCoDe process and results
• Provides clinical and analytic expertise to site scientists on data analysis and manuscript development
• Leads and provides technical expertise and guidance on special scientific studies on the CHAMPS Platform
• Coordinates and prepares documents, special reports, and special analyses for CHAMPS leadership and donors

Leadership and Management (50%):

• Leads the CHAMPS clinical team that consists of the Provides oversight and support to lab and diagnostic experts on the team
• Provides supervision and guidance to staff to troubleshoot and solve problems, enabling the team members to carry out their responsibilities and tasks in an efficient and effective manner.
• Tracks progress and evaluates employee performance through reviews and sets key performance indicators to measure success
• Works closely with other CHAMPS managers to promote collaborations and to keep lines of communication open with other Program Office Units and teams
• Represents CHAMPS at scientific conferences and meetings
• Participates in Site Strategy and Implementation Unit leadership meetings and other Program Office meetings

TRAVEL:

• Up to 20% international travel

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Medical degree with 5-8 years of clinical experience working in global health, infectious disease, or maternal and child health
• Experience working with a surveillance or research program domestically or globally
• Experience managing and working with medical and scientific staff in field sites

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• 5-10 years of experience Experience working with an international multi-site network
• Experience working in low-resource communities
• Experience coordinating and managing technical and scientific workgroups
• Solid data analysis and public health experience
• Excellent writing and communication skills
• Experience developing peer-reviewed scientific manuscripts
• Ability to work across organizational teams and manage program priorities

Emory is an equal opportunity employer, and qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, protected veteran status or other characteristics protected by state or federal law. Emory University does not discriminate in admissions, educational programs, or employment, including recruitment, hiring, promotions, transfers, discipline, terminations, wage and salary administration, benefits, and training. Students, faculty, and staff are assured of participation in university programs and in the use of facilities without such discrimination. Emory University complies with Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Vietnam Era Veteran's Readjustment Assistance Act, and applicable executive orders, federal and state regulations regarding nondiscrimination, equal opportunity, and affirmative action (for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities). Inquiries regarding this policy should be directed to the Emory University Department of Equity and Civil Rights Compliance, 201 Dowman Drive, Administration Building, Atlanta, GA Telephone: V) | TDD).

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