With a workforce of over 30,000 people, and opportunities in more than 1,000 different job categories, the City of Philadelphia is the fifth largest city in the United States and one of the largest employers in Southeastern Pennsylvania. As an employer, the City of Philadelphia operates through the guiding principles of service, integrity, respect, accountability, collaboration, diversity and inclusion. Through these principles, we strive to effectively deliver services, to resolve the challenges facing our city, and to make Philadelphia a place where all of our residents have the opportunity to reach their potential. 

AGENCY DESCRIPTION

The Philadelphia Department of Public Health (PDPH), with some 900 staff and a budget of $350 million, promotes and protects the health of all Philadelphians and provides a safety net for the most vulnerable. The agency leads programs to prevent communicable diseases (including HIV, other STDs, tuberculosis, and vaccine-preventable diseases); prevent chronic diseases and promote healthy behaviors; prevent environmental health risks; investigate outbreaks of disease; respond to public health emergencies; and promote the health of women, children, and families. In addition, the department operates eight primary care clinics.

POSITION SUMMARY

The Administrator of Home-Based Environmental Health Services will manage two key programs, one that is to be expanded and one that is new. In the future, if additional opportunities for prevention are identified, the responsibilities may grow to include other home-based environmental health programs and services.

• PDPH currently operates the Lead and Healthy Homes program, which identifies children with elevated blood lead levels and works with landlords and homeowners to remediate lead hazards. 
  

This program will be expanded and undergo a shift in emphasis toward primary prevention of lead poisoning, as described in “Lead-Free Kids”, a plan published by PDPH, and following through on recommendations of Mayor Kenney’s Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Advisory Group.

• PDPH is working with a broad group of stakeholders (including Managed Care Organizations and health care providers) to develop Room2Breathe, a new program to prevent asthma exacerbations through remediation of asthma triggers in the home. Room2Breathe will identify children with moderate-to-severe asthma; coordinate home-based interventions that will be conducted by community outreach workers employed by selected pediatric healthcare providers; provide enhanced home-based environmental services as needed; and conduct a rigorous evaluation of the effect of the program on health care utilization and costs. 
  

This position will report to the Director for Environmental Health Services.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

The Administrator for Home-Based Environmental Health Services will:

• Develop and expand the Lead and Healthy Homes program’s activities on primary prevention of lead poisoning, including: 
  
• Enforcement of the law requiring landlords to certify their properties as Lead Safe or Lead Free when children are residing in those properties; 
  
• Education of landlords and tenants about their rights and responsibilities under this law; and 
  
• Expansion of neighborhood-based and targeted testing of high-risk properties for the presence of Lead hazards. 
  
• Strengthen the system to remediate properties with identified lead hazards through enforcement, incentives, and financial assistance 
  
• Strengthen the Lead and Healthy Home program’s data systems and data analyses to inform primary prevention and secondary prevention efforts, and produce regular reports on program activities, outputs, and outcomes; 
  
• Establish financial relationships among managed care organizations (MCOs), community outreach providers and PDPH to sustainably fund home-based environmental services for children with asthma (the Room2Breathe program); 
  
• Work with MCOs and community outreach providers to write protocols for Room2Breathe activities and train -education and environmental staff in those protocols; 
  
• Supervise the Program Coordinator of the Room2Breathe program, who will be responsible for its day-to-day operations; 
  
• Work with the evaluator of the Room2Breathe program to set up and maintain data systems for the program, analyze these data, produce reports, and evaluate the impact of the program on asthma symptoms, health care utilization and costs. 
  

COMPETENCIES, KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES

• Effective oral and written communication skills.
  
• Strong skills in using data for program management. 
  
• Experience and skills in working collaboratively with external partners to accomplish program objectives. 

1. Completion of a bachelor’s degree program at an accredited college or university in Public Health, Sciences, or related field.
   Master’s degree in public health or related field is preferred.
   AND
2. At least two years’ experience managing public health programs, environmental health issues or experience working with health care providers and/or health plans (including the direct supervision and staff), either in government or the nonprofit sector.

OR

Any equivalent combination of education and experience determined to be acceptable by the Philadelphia Department of Public Health which has included completion of a Bachelor’s Degree program as an educational minimum and the experience described above. 

All applications MUST include a resume that includes a summary of your work experience and two references.

Successful candidate must be a city of Philadelphia resident within six months of hire.

The City of Philadelphia is an Equal Opportunity employer and does not permit discrimination based on race, ethnicity, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, marital status, source of income, familial status, genetic information or domestic or sexual violence victim status. If you believe you were discriminated against, call the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations at 215-686-4670 or send an email to pchr@ phila.gov. For more information, go to: Human Relations Website: http://www.phila.gov/humanrelations/Pages/default.aspx