Summer 2026 Incident Management & Capacity Building Internship

Summer 2026 represents a prolonged, complex public health situation for the City of Boston, characterized by a large influx of international visitors, multiple daily mass gatherings, sustained pressure on healthcare systems, and increased risk of infectious disease transmission. The Boston Public Health Commission’s (BPHC) Infectious Disease Bureau (IDB) plays a critical role in preparing for, monitoring, and responding to infectious disease threats during this approximately 60-day period.

To meet these demands, IDB is implementing a comprehensive Summer 2026 Operations Plan to manage the added responsibility of the FIFA World Cup on top of already existing events like Pride, Sail Boston, and July 4th Celebrations. This Operations Plan is focused on enhanced disease surveillance, health education, healthcare system coordination, and response readiness. While overall response functions are led by experienced

Duties:

• Works to help BPHC advance as an antiracist organization by meeting or exceeding the standards

set by the BPHC Anti-Racism Policy.

Incident Incident Management and Event Preparation

• Assist with refining planning materials related to Summer 2026 preparedness, including FIFA World Cup, Pride, disease screenings, etc.
• Assist with the logistical, operational, and organizational planning necessary to develop effective internal and external collaboration around Summer 2026 events.
• Support the development, refinement, and maintenance of planning tools such as task trackers, timelines, and reference documents
• Assist in research into, and summarization of, high-impact infectious disease scenarios and response initiatives for internal use.

Health Education and Community Outreach

• Assist with drafting, reviewing, and organizing health education materials related to infectious disease prevention (e.g., vaccination, respiratory illnesses, gastrointestinal illnesses, STIs/Sexual Health)
• Assist with development of educational materials specific to potential outbreak scenarios and post-summer response (STIs, mpox, ongoing care, etc.)
• Support adaptation of materials for a variety of audiences, including City of Boston residents, domestic and international visitors, community partners, bar/restaurant management, etc.
• Assist with reviewing previous outreach strategies around respiratory illness, vaccination, novel and emerging diseases, etc. and developing strategic planning for future campaigns
• Attend outreach events to speak to residents about infectious disease topics and Summer 2026 preparations and considerations.
• Assist with development of trainings and presentations for community engagement that reflect the cultural and linguistic competency of related audiences.
• Coordinate with community partners to establish new, and maintain existing, relationship to support the ongoing prevention and response for seasonal and emerging diseases.

Healthcare System Coordination Support

• Assist in organizing and maintaining healthcare system preparedness information (e.g., hospital emergency manager contacts, isolation capacity data, negative pressure rooms)
• Support communication with hospitals, healthcare providers, community health centers, and pharmacies around outbreak identification, infection control, disease prevention, vaccination recommendations, etc.
• Help document coordination workflows between IDB, hospitals, and emergency preparedness partners.

Healthcare System Coordination Support

• Assist in organizing and maintaining healthcare system preparedness information (e.g., hospital emergency manager contacts, isolation capacity data, negative pressure rooms)

• Support communication with hospitals, healthcare providers, community health centers, and pharmacies around outbreak identification, infection control, disease prevention, vaccination recommendations, etc.

• Help document coordination workflows between IDB, hospitals, and emergency preparedness partners.

• Knowledge of or willingness to learn about the role of public health in addressing racism, the social

determinants of health, and inequities in health outcomes as well as strategies to advance racial

justice and health equity.

• Commitment to health equity and racial/social justice issues.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Basic understanding of public health principles and practices
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (e.g, Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in diverse teams
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail
• Interest in health equity, community engagement, and/or disease prevention
• Commitment to professional ethics and maintaining confidentiality of sensitive information
• Available to commit to a set schedule (20 hours per week) and a hybrid in-person/telework format

The mission of the Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC) is to work in partnership with communities to protect and promote the health and well-being of all Boston residents, especially those impacted by racism and systemic inequities. The BPHC sets an expectation that all staff and leadership commit, individually and as part of the BPHC team, to hold ourselves accountable to establishing a culture of anti-racism and advance racial equity and justice through each of our bureaus, programs, and offices.

• A Criminal Offenders Records Information request must be completed for this position. However, a record is not an automatic bar to employment but is reviewed in relation to the job applied for.
• Certain immunizations will be recommended and/or required prior to commencement of employment duties.
• Any position that requires an advanced degree will be subject to education verification.
• Certain positions at the BPHC may be Grant Funded.
• The Boston Public Health Commission is an EEO Employer and all applicants meeting the minimum requirements are eligible to apply.
• Certain positions at the BPHC may require Child Protective Service Background verification.
• The advertised shift and schedule are subject to change at the department's discretion.
• Additional qualifications: enrollment in or recent completion of an undergraduate or graduate program in computer science, data science, biostatistics, public health informatics, applied mathematics, or a related field. Working proficiency in Python and SQL; familiarity with at least one ML or LLM framework (e.g., scikit-learn, PyTorch, LangChain, LlamaIndex, Hugging Face Transformers). Comfort with tabular and text data, version control (Git), and translating technical findings for non-technical public health audiences. Demonstrated attention to data privacy, responsible AI practice, and bias auditing is preferred. Prior experience with public health, social-science, or health-equity data is a plus.

20 hours per week

$18 - $20 hourly