State Medical Operations Coordination Center Duty Officer (Health Systems Specialist 1 EMC) (NY HELPS) - 52072

Duties Description The State Medical Operations Coordination Center (SMOCC) Duty Officer serves as the on-shift operational supervisor of the Department’s 24/7 hub for statewide health system situational awareness, operational coordination, and decision support. The Duty Officer directs shift operations, supervises Communications Specialists, establishes operational priorities, validates significant incident information, and ensures the Department maintains an accurate and continuously updated common operating picture during routine operations, planned events, system disruptions, disasters, and major incidents.

Duty Officers assess health care system conditions, determine the operational significance of developing incidents, and direct appropriate notification, escalation, coordination, and documentation activities. The position supports patient movement and interfacility transfer coordination and oversees the activation, deployment, tracking, support, and demobilization of State EMS Task Force resources and other assigned health and medical assets. Duty Officers provide timely decision support to Department leadership through operational briefings, executive notifications, and situation reports. In-person work is required to supervise shift personnel, maintain access to SMOCC’s redundant communications and data systems, and ensure uninterrupted operational coordination.

Work involves directing statewide health and medical coordination activities within a rapidly changing operational environment requiring continuous assessment of risk, operational priorities, and resource needs. The incumbent integrates information from numerous independent sources, evaluates the significance of emerging events, establishes operational priorities for shift personnel, and determines appropriate notification, escalation, and coordination actions consistent with Department policy. The position requires independent judgment in managing multiple concurrent incidents while ensuring accurate situational awareness for Department leadership. Errors in judgment, delayed escalation, or ineffective coordination may adversely affect statewide health care operations, executive decision-making, emergency response activities, or public safety.

Major Functions and Associated Duties:

Shift Leadership, Supervision, and Operations Management - 30% Directs and oversees SMOCC activities during assigned shifts to ensure continuous statewide health system situational awareness, operational coordination, and decision support; Establishes shift-level operational priorities based on Department policies, current incident conditions, resource needs, and direction from SMOCC leadership; Supervises Communications Specialists by assigning and reviewing work, providing operational guidance, monitoring performance, and resolving issues that affect shift operations; Ensures staff comply with established procedures, notification requirements, documentation standards, and escalation protocols; Conducts structured shift briefings, operational readiness checks, and complete turnover between shifts to ensure unresolved incidents, pending actions, resource requests, leadership priorities, and emerging concerns are accurately transferred; Adjusts personnel assignments and workload priorities in response to changing operational conditions; Provides coaching, training, and performance feedback to promote staff development, accountability, and consistency across the 24/7 operation.

Situational Awareness, Operational Analysis, and Decision Support - 30% Directs the development and maintenance of the Department’s common operating picture by integrating and evaluating operational information from health care facilities, emergency medical services systems, Department programs, emergency management partners, weather services, geographic information systems, field personnel, and other authorized sources; Assesses the operational significance of developing incidents and determines appropriate notification, coordination, and escalation actions based on actual and potential impacts to health care system operations; Identifies emerging threats, regional trends, resource constraints, infrastructure disruptions, and potential cascading impacts that may require early intervention or leadership awareness; Reviews and validates significant incident information, resolves conflicting reports, and ensures preliminary or unconfirmed information is appropriately identified before dissemination; Directs the preparation of operational summaries, executive notifications, briefings, situation reports, and visual displays that provide Department leadership with timely, accurate, and actionable decision support; Continuously reassesses priority incidents and ensures changes in conditions, impacts, or resource needs are promptly elevated and incorporated into the common operating picture.

Incident Coordination, Operational Communications, and Executive Support - 20% Serves as the Department’s primary on-shift operational coordination point for information exchange among Department programs, health care facilities, emergency medical services agencies, emergency management organizations, field personnel, and other response partners during routine operations, planned events, and emergency incidents; Directs and prioritizes operational communications to ensure significant information is transmitted accurately, efficiently, and to the appropriate recipients; Determines and initiates notifications and escalations to SMOCC leadership, Department executives, program representatives, regional partners, and external coordination centers in accordance with established procedures; Oversees the coordination and tracking of patient movement and interfacility transfer activities and ensures operational barriers, resource needs, and unresolved requests are assessed and elevated; Ensures stakeholders maintain a common understanding of incident conditions, operational priorities, response activities, and outstanding actions; Reviews communication logs, incident records, operational timelines, and related documentation for accuracy, completeness, and compliance with Department standards; Provides concise verbal and written briefings to leadership and ensures continuity of information throughout extended incidents and operational periods.

Emergency Response, State EMS Task Force, and Resource Coordination - 10% Directs or supports statewide health and medical response coordination during emergencies, disasters, planned events, and health care system disruptions; Oversees or supports the activation, deployment, tracking, operational support, and demobilization of State EMS Task Force resources and other assigned health and medical assets consistent with approved plans and operational direction; Evaluates resource requests, verifies mission requirements, and coordinates the information necessary to support assignment, prioritization, and deployment decisions; Maintains awareness of resource availability, readiness, location, mission status, and operational capability using Department resource-management and situational-awareness systems; Ensures timely information exchange between deployed personnel, health care facilities, Department leadership, emergency management partners, and SMOCC staff; Integrates field reports and resource status information into the Department’s common operating picture and identifies issues requiring logistical, administrative, safety, or leadership support; Oversees mission tracking, operational timelines, incident documentation, and post-incident reporting related to resource deployments and field activities.

Staff Development, Operational Readiness, and Continuous Improvement - 10% Maintains the operational readiness of the State Medical Operations Coordination Center by ensuring the functionality of communications equipment, information systems, situational-awareness platforms, redundant capabilities, and operational reference materials; Ensures shift personnel maintain proficiency in Department procedures, emergency management principles, health care coordination, communication systems, and assigned operational responsibilities; Plans, conducts, or participates in training, exercises, simulations, and reviews of actual incidents and activations; Identifies staff training and performance needs and provides coaching, instruction, and corrective guidance as appropriate; Assists in developing and updating operational procedures, job aids, notification protocols, position checklists, quality assurance standards, and continuity plans; Reviews operational records and staff work products to identify documentation issues, procedural gaps, or opportunities for improved performance; Contributes to after-action reviews, corrective action planning, lessons learned implementation, and continuous improvement initiatives that strengthen statewide health and medical coordination.

Non-Competitive Candidates via NY HELPS: New York State DOH Emergency Medical Technician-Basic (EMT B), or Advanced EMT - Intermediate (AEMT-I) certification AND four years of administrative experience in an EMS program including work as a professional EMS planner; county or regional emergency medical administrator/coordinator, administrator or officer position with an ambulance squad, or EMS educator or trainer.

Substitution: EMS experience in an ambulance service, or advanced life support first response service, may be credited on a month-to-month basis for up to two years of the required experience. College study may be substituted for up to 2 years of the required experience at the rate of 30 credit hours for 1 year of experience.

Preferred Qualifications: Certifications / Licenses: ICS-100, ICS-200, IS-700, and IS-800 are required or must be obtained within six months of appointment; Emergency Medical Technician certification is required; Additional training or certification in emergency management, emergency operations center functions, health care emergency preparedness, public safety communications, incident coordination, or supervisory leadership is preferred; ICS-300 is preferred but not required.

Experience: At least three years of experience in emergency medical services operations, health care operations, public health preparedness, emergency management, public safety communications, emergency operations center activities, or another environment involving time-sensitive information management and operational coordination is preferred; Experience supervising personnel, leading operational teams, or coordinating work within a shift-based environment is preferred; Experience coordinating or supporting multi-agency response activities during emergencies, planned events, or system disruptions is preferred; Experience using incident-management, situational-awareness, resource-tracking, or dispatch-related systems is desirable.

Knowledge / Skills / Abilities: Knowledge of New York State’s emergency medical services and health care delivery systems; Knowledge of emergency management, incident coordination, resource management, and operations center principles; Ability to supervise personnel, assign and prioritize work, provide direction, and address operational performance issues; Ability to integrate information from multiple sources, assess operational significance, identify emerging risks, and recognize potential cascading impacts; Ability to exercise sound judgment and take accurate, timely action in high-stress environments; Ability to synthesize complex information into concise operational summaries, executive notifications, briefings, and situation reports; Strong written and verbal communication skills for interagency coordination and leadership support; Proficiency with operational databases, radio systems, geographic information systems, incident-management platforms, and decision-support tools; High degree of organization, attention to detail, composure, and operational awareness.

7 A.M. - 8 P.M. / 7 P.M.-8 A.M. shifts

When reviewing qualifications, omissions and vagueness cannot be interpreted in the candidate’s favor. Candidates are responsible for providing accurate and clear descriptions of their experience demonstrating how they meet the minimum qualifications.

This position is part of the NYS HELPS program. No examination is required.

This position may require travel throughout New York State including overnights to areas not served by public transportation.

We offer a work-life balance and a generous benefits package, worth 65% of salary, including:

• Holiday & Paid Time Off
• Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)
• Pension from New York State Employees’ Retirement System
• Shift & Geographic pay differentials
• Affordable Health Care options
• Family dental and vision benefits at no additional cost
• NYS Deferred Compensation plan
• Access to NY 529 and NY ABLE College Savings Programs, and U.S. Savings Bonds
• And many more…