The National Park Service (NPS) Office of Public Health is pleased to announce that two volunteer epidemiologists have been hired this summer at Grand Canyon and Yellowstone National Parks.

Stuart Castle, MPH, and Leo Cropper, DVM, MPVM, DACVPM, are the first epidemiologists hired through the inaugural NPS Epidemiologists-in-Residence (EIR) program, a concept designed to augment public health capacity at the park level.

In exchange for park housing and a small stipend, EIRs will provide on-site public health expertise in conjunction with park managers and local/state health departments.  Potential EIR projects include collecting and analyzing park-based data, training employees and staff, and assisting in disease response and preparedness activities.

Castle will be taking a leave of absence from the New Mexico Department of Health and will be stationed at Grand Canyon from June 15–Sept. 15.  His proposed projects include assessing immunization coverage among park employees, developing a park-based emergency medical services surveillance system, and assisting in tick-borne disease prevention activities at the North Rim.

Cropper will be taking a leave of absence from the Air Force and will be stationed at Yellowstone from May 20–Sept.15.  Cropper’s proposed projects include leading a zoonotic disease roundtable for wildlife biologists, assessing brucellosis worker safety protocols, and further developing the park’s pandemic influenza preparedness plan.

If the EIR program is successful, the NPS Office of Public Health hopes to offer park-based volunteer opportunities each year at these and/or other participating National Parks.  Positions will be announced through the CSTE, EIS Alumni Association, and Emory University Public Health Employment Connection Web sites.

For additional information, please contact CDR David Wong, MD, Medical Epidemiologist with the NPS Office of Public Health, at david_wong@nps.gov.