Job Information
City of New York Drug-Checking Technician , Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Use Prevention, Care, and Treatment in New York, New York
Job Description
Established in 1805, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (the NYC Health Department) is the oldest and largest health department in the country. Our mission is to protect and improve the health of all New Yorkers, in service of a vision of a city in which all New Yorkers can realize their full health potential, regardless of who they are, how old they are, where they are from, or where they live.
As a world-renowned public health agency with a history of building transformative public health programming and infrastructure, innovating in science and scholarship to advance public health knowledge, and responding to urgent public health crises from New York City’s yellow fever outbreak in 1822, to the COVID-19 pandemic we are a hub for public health innovation, expertise, and programs, and services. We serve as the population health strategist, and policy, and planning authority for the City of New York, while also having a vast impact on national and international public policy, including programs and services focused on food and nutrition, anti-tobacco support, chronic disease prevention, HIV/AIDS treatment, family and child health, environmental health, mental health, and racial and social justice work, among others.
Our Agency’s five strategic priorities, building off a recently-completed strategic planning process emerging from the COVID-19 emergency, are:
1) To re-envision how the Health Department prepares for and responds to health emergencies, with a focus on building a “response-ready” organization, with faster decision-making, transparent public communications, and stronger surveillance and bridges to healthcare systems 2) Address and prevent chronic and diet-related disease, including addressing rising rates of childhood obesity and the impact of diabetes, and transforming our food systems to improve nutrition and enhance access to healthy foods
3) Address the second pandemic of mental illness including: reducing overdose deaths, strengthening our youth mental health systems, and supporting people with serious mental illness
4) Reduce black maternal mortality and make New York a model city for women’s health
5) Mobilize against and combat the health impacts of climate change
Our 7,000-plus team members bring extraordinary diversity to the work of public health. True to our value of equity as a foundational element of all of our work, and a critical foundation to achieving population health impact in New York City, the NYC Health Department has been a leader in recognizing and dismantling racism’s impacts on the health of New Yorkers and beyond. In 2021, the NYC Board of Health declared racism as a public health crisis. With commitment to advance anti-racist public health practices that dismantle systems that perpetuate inequitable power, opportunity and access, the NYC Health Department continues to work in and with communities and community organizations to increase their access to health services and decrease avoidable health outcomes.
PROGRAM AND JOB DESCRIPTION:
The Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Use Prevention, Care and Treatment (BADUPCT) works to reduce morbidity and mortality related to alcohol and substance use among New Yorkers through contracting and oversight of prevention, treatment, harm reduction, and recovery and support services; policy analysis and development; epidemiology, surveillance, and evaluation; development and dissemination of treatment and management guidelines; harm reduction initiatives; public and provider outreach and education; and community involvement and interagency collaboration. The Bureau amplifies the voices of those most impacted by alcohol and substance use and focuses on inequitable structural, social, service, and communication factors that drive disparities.
The Research and Surveillance Unit conducts alcohol- and drug-related surveillance, program evaluation and research, maintains databases, designs research protocols, produces reports, writes scientific articles for peer review journals, and facilitates program and policy development.
In 2021, BADUPCT established a drug-checking program to gain insight into the unregulated drug supply and provide fact-based information to people using the service. Using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and immunoassay test strips, trained drug-checking technicians currently offer services at five syringe service program locations, including two sites that offer overdose prevention services.
With an annual budget of approximately $3 million dollars per year, Overdose Data to Action-Limiting Overdose through Collaborative Actions in Localities (OD2A: LOCAL) aims to strengthen NYC’s response to the opioid overdose epidemic and reduce overdose deaths. Informed by critical new surveillance and in collaboration with cross-sector partners across levels of government, BADUPCT will implement focused prevention and response strategies to reach populations that bear the heaviest burden of opioid use and associated morbidity and mortality, which includes expanding the drug-checking initiative.
Job Description
The Bureau seeks one Drug-Checking Technician to provide drug-checking services in partnership with community-based programs, with the goals of reducing drug-related harm, increasing community knowledge, and assisting individuals in making informed decisions regarding their substance use.
Under the direction of the Drug-Checking Program Manager, the Drug-Checking Technician will perform the following tasks:
Analyze samples using FTIR and immunoassay test strips.
Interpret findings and communicate results to service users.
Provide non-judgmental and evidence-based information about the unregulated drug supply to service users.
Offer tailored harm reduction counseling and connect service users to other resources as necessary.
Collect data about service users and submitted samples, and record results in REDCap.
Engage in ongoing learning about the unregulated drug supply and complete training on advanced drug-checking techniques.
Follow all program policies and procedures.
Be responsible for the set-up, take down, transportation, and maintenance of sensitive technical equipment.
Perform ongoing review of data to ensure quality assurance.
Contribute to the development of drug-checking protocols, materials, and data products.
Contribute to research activities related to the drug-checking program.
Support the dissemination of drug-checking findings, including for presentations and manuscripts.
Build relationships with staff at community-based sites, including harm reduction specialists, outreach workers, and program managers, to ensure seamless and effective service delivery.
Stay up to date on the latest trends, developments, and innovations related to drug checking, harm reduction, and substance use to enhance the overall effectiveness of the program.
**IMPORTANT NOTES TO ALL CANDIDATES:
Please note: If you are called for an interview you will be required to bring to your interview copies of original documentation, such as:
A document that establishes identity for employment eligibility, such as: A Valid U.S. Passport, Permanent Resident Card/Green Card, or Driver’s license.
Proof of Education according to the education requirements of the civil service title.
Current Resume
Proof of Address/NYC Residency dated within the last 60 days, such as: Recent Utility Bill (i.e. Telephone, Cable, Mobile Phone)
Additional documentation may be required to evaluate your qualification as outlined in this posting’s “Minimum Qualification Requirements” section. Examples of additional documentation may be, but not limited to: college transcript, experience verification or professional trade licenses.
If after your interview you are the selected candidate you will be contacted to schedule an on-boarding appointment. By the time of this appointment you will be asked to produce the originals of the above documents along with your original Social Security card.
**LOAN FORGIVENESS
As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website at StudentAid.gov/PSLF.
"FINAL APPOINTMENTS ARE SUBJECT TO OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT & BUDGET APPROVAL”
Qualifications
- For Assignment Level I (only physical, biological and environmental sciences and public health) A master's degree from an accredited college or university with a specialization in an appropriate field of physical, biological or environmental science or in public health.
To be appointed to Assignment Level II and above, candidates must have:
A doctorate degree from an accredited college or university with specialization in an appropriate field of physical, biological, environmental or social science and one year of full-time experience in a responsible supervisory, administrative or research capacity in the appropriate field of specialization; or
A master's degree from an accredited college or university with specialization in an appropriate field of physical, biological, environmental or social science and three years of responsible full-time research experience in the appropriate field of specialization; or
Education and/or experience which is equivalent to "1" or "2" above. However, all candidates must have at least a master's degree in an appropriate field of specialization and at least two years of experience described in "2" above. Two years as a City Research Scientist Level I can be substituted for the experience required in "1" and "2" above.
NOTE:
Probationary Period
Appointments to this position are subject to a minimum probationary period of one year.
Additional Information
The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.