Director Of Health Equity & Strategic Initiatives - 165266

Adams County Health Department is a newly formed local public health agency in the State of Colorado and part of the Adams County Government.  The department was established on January 1, 2023.   As of June 1, 2024, the department is composed of six Divisions including Performance and Business Excellence, Health Equity and Strategic Initiatives, Epidemiology and Data Science, Public Health Nursing, Environmental Health, and Nutrition and Family Health, and employs approximately 200 staff with an annual operating budget of approximately $30M.

Primary Responsibilities for Success:

The Health Equity and Strategic Initiatives (HESI) Division Director provides high-level professional leadership, management, and senior-level administrative duties to plan, coordinate, and direct the HESI division of the Adams County Health Department. This executive-level role is responsible for leadership oversight of strategic plans and programs designed to improve the health of the community, address Social Determinants of Health (SDOH), advance health equity, and reduce disparities and inequities in local population health outcomes. Oversees programs within this Division which include access to care, health plan enrollment, regional health systems coordination, food systems and food security efforts, mental and behavioral health strategies, maternal, child, and family health systems and policy efforts, and community health promotion and prevention work including tobacco control, youth engagement, and policies and interventions addressing risk and protective factors.  This division includes policy development for agency-wide efforts which focus on building a stronger, more integrated local public health system responsive to community needs addressing drivers of health disparities.

• Leads in developing, monitoring, and updating HESI goals, objectives, and priorities in alignment with agency/countywide plans and sustaining a culture of continuous process improvement.

• Provides management and oversight of division fiscal, human resources, facility resources, grant processes and contractual services.

• Monitors public health trends, best practices, and innovations to facilitate development of initiatives and priorities that advance agency's mission to improving population-based health and addressing the systematic drivers of health disparities.

• Develops, strengthens, and mobilizes strategic community partnerships through community engagement; establishes new and expanded multi-sector community partnerships and ensures community capacity and resiliency building efforts to strengthen an integrated local public health system.

• Provides updates and information as needed to ACHD directors, ACHD Board of Health, Adams County Board of County Commissioners, other local elected officials, county agencies, human service organizations, and private/public/nonprofit community organizations.

• Maintains support of key partners comprising the local public health system. Responsible for integrating HESI communications and community outreach efforts across the department. Ensures effective interface of programs across divisions, other county departments, community partners, and federal/state/local agencies.

• Responsible for the coordination of strategic initiatives and identification of emerging issues and resource needs to ensure community health, SDOH and equity related activities are appropriately staffed and financed to meet established goals and timelines.

• Provides leadership and oversight for programs including compliance with ACHD mission/values, internal policies/processes, funder requirements, and completion of project deliverables.

• Works to develop and implement strategies and apply tools for continuous process improvement and development/maintenance of outcomes-based performance tracking, and evaluation of activities for all aspects of HESI program work.

• Oversees division participation in a collective community health needs assessment and community health improvement plan.

• Acts as a resource and actively seeks opportunities to promote health equity, health promotion, health communication, and health education within the HESI division, entire health department, and county offices. Provides content expertise and recommendations to agency leadership.

• Develops and maintains partnerships with community organizers, advocacy groups, cross-sector partners, municipalities, and other local health departments to elevate solutions for addressing the drivers of health disparities.

• Supports diverse perspectives in developing, implementing, and evaluating policies and programs that affect community health.

• Responsible for division budgets, staffing, and other resource allocation. This involves critical thinking, collaboration, systems analysis, and personnel resource planning to organize and direct the current and future operations of the HESI division.

• Directs development of long-range Division goals and program plans, reports progress of division programs, and leads division effort to implement effective program evaluation, planning, coordination and integration, performance management, strategic planning, research, evaluation methods, and quality improvement efforts.

• Serves as Executive Sponsor on large-scale, cross-divisional, and multidisciplinary strategic projects.

• Provides executive leadership and sponsorship of large-scale, cross-Division and multidisciplinary projects, including special projects, policy initiatives, community engagement efforts, and change management efforts as assigned.

• Champions quality improvement and process improvement efforts and brings new opportunities forward to the health department leadership team.

• Promotes health equity as a foundational element to improving health outcomes in the communities served by the health department.   Strives to integrate equity and justice into all department programs, services, and activities, working in close partnership with the Department's Executive Leadership team and other subject matter experts.

• Responds to public health emergencies and initiates corrective actions and responses pursuant to federal, state, and local laws, as assigned by the Executive Director.  Plays a critical role in the health department's incident command system (ICS) during incidents or other emergencies.

• Serves as an agency spokesperson within the broader community on ongoing and emerging public health issues, community health promotion, and policies.

Innovative Practices

• Brings forward sustainable, visionary concepts on new methods of service and community health improvement activities.

• Embraces creativity as core function of leadership and encourages break-through ideas from those around them.

• Embraces process improvement, change management, project management, and evaluation as critical leadership tools, and recognizes the benefit that these practices bring and champions application of these tools within the Divisions and programs supervised and across the department as a whole.

• Attends and participates in Gemba walks and other quality improvement activities for community-based services at all locations.

• Creates a safe environment for staff to bring forward and test breakthrough ideas, innovative practices, creates an openness for learning from mistakes, and commits to supporting staff as they support the community.

Financial Responsibilities

• Assists with budget and financial planning activities and budget monitoring. Reviews and approves certain program expenditures.

• Ensures that operational procedures are consistent and projects are on time, on task, and within budget.

• Supports public health programs in identifying and evaluating grant and additional funding opportunities.

• Recommends and supports process improvements and policy/procedure changes to enhance quality, time, and budget deliverables.

Emergency Preparedness Duties

• Employee responds, as required, to support public health emergencies, incidents and events. Employee participates in all exercises and drills on emergency preparedness, as required. Completes trainings identified as appropriate for this level employee.

Additional duties:

• Performs other duties as assigned and required.

• Employee responds, as required, to support public health emergencies, incidents, and events.

• Employee participates in all exercises and drills on emergency preparedness, as required.

• Employee completes emergency preparedness and response trainings as appropriate for this level of employee within the health department.

Responsibility to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

• Must commit to a learning mindset and continuous improvement regarding the practice of diversity, equity, and inclusion in all aspects of work within Adams County and The Department of Public Health including management style, work style, training, communication, and evaluation.

• Performs both internal and external work in a way that is equitably inclusive and effective within the diverse communities we serve.

• Regularly assesses work and supports changes to remove systemic barriers, build systems that address inequities, and integrate Health Equity into all areas of work.

• Creates and maintains partnerships and processes that support and integrate diversity, equity, and inclusion into all aspects of Adams County Health Department work.

• Prioritizes transparency and supports an open-door culture.

• Integrates diversity, equity, and inclusion into internal and external goal setting.

HIPAA Statement

Maintain sensitive & confidential client information according to the HIPAA policy confidentiality requirements.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• Supervision Received:  General direction provided primarily by the Executive Director of the ACHD and secondarily by the Deputy Executive Director.

• Supervision Exercised:  Manages multiple programs, functions, or operations through first or second-level supervisors. Provides policy direction and develops operational and staff resources. Position is responsible for final decision-making and resolution of the most difficult, complex, and pervasive issues regarding policy, personnel, and community partners.

Education: A Master's Degree from an accredited college or university with major coursework in public health, public administration, biological or environmental science, or a related field is required.

Experience: A minimum of 5 years progressively responsible experience in health promotion or other related public health fields AND five years supervisory, management, or other leadership related experience. Local governmental public health experience strongly preferred.

Hours, Location, Travel:

• Hours

• Typical work hours are 8am

• 5pm, but work schedule is flexible and based upon the needs of the organization.  This position qualifies for flexible work schedules.

• Location

• This is a hybrid position that is currently based out of the Adams County Government Center in Brighton, Colorado.

• Travel

• The individual hired for this position should anticipate daily travel to multiple work locations  within the Denver metropolitan area for oversight of various teams.  We currently have five (5) health department locations.  Travel overnight may also be required multiple times per year.

Equipment Used

Standard office equipment including, but not limited to, personal computer and associated hardware and software, telephone, copier, calculator, and audio-visual equipment.

Working Conditions and Physical Requirements

Work is primarily conducted indoors with occasional time spent in an outside environment. Incumbent experiences routine exposures and hazards of a typical office environment. Incumbent is occasionally required to work after normal work hours to attend governmental meetings.

• Requires sufficient hearing and speech ability to communicate verbally in response to inquiries, complaints, and to speak to groups of people or the media in an informational or training situation

• Requires the ability to sit and perform administrative and computer work for significant periods of time.