Writer jobs in New Rochelle, NY

Company Overview:

With an annual budget of $2.3 billion and more than 7,000 employees throughout the five boroughs, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYC Health Department) is one of the largest public health agencies in the world, serving 8 million New Yorkers from diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds. We're tackling a broad range of public health issues with innovative policies and programs and getting exceptional results, but our work is never finished. The breadth of our innovative programs provides the widest range of choices for every member of our team.   

 With grant funds from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the NYC Health Department is undertaking a new initiative that will meet critical infrastructure needs and make possible strategic investments that will have lasting effects on public health. Investments and improvements through this initiative will help modernize the NYC Health Department’s foundational capabilities and data infrastructure, enabling it to partner in complex health and health care environments and, in turn, support better public health outcomes, including COVID-19. This initiative supports larger efforts to rebalance investments in public health and more equitably serve communities and populations.

 The selected candidate will be an employee of Public Health Solutions, a nonprofit organization which is the fiscal and administrative manager of the grant but will work be supervised by the NYC Health Department. This is a grant-funded position ending in November 2027.

Program Description:

The Bureau of Communications manages many of the agency’s most critical interactions with the public, from raising awareness and promoting health behaviors, to advancing policies and responding to health emergencies.  The Publications team edits, manages the design and printing of, and produces the agency’s public-facing materials — such as toolkits, reports, guidebooks, brochures, fact sheets, infographics, posters, postcards, and more — on topics from overdose prevention and mental health care services, to quitting smoking, lowering blood pressure, and finding doula care, among many others. Most of the Publications team’s work is also posted to the Agency’s website for viewing and download. 

 The Publications team collaborates with a variety of health experts from across the agency’s divisions — including Disease Control, Epidemiology, Mental Hygiene, Environmental Health, and so on — on high-visibility projects and strives to present the agency’s content in plain language that is accessible to all New Yorkers, including parents and caregivers, teens, health care staff, community partners, and more.

Summary of the Position:

The NYC Health Department has an opening for a Writer. Reporting to the Director of Publications, the Writer is highly skilled in composing and developing content. The Writer works collaboratively with editing and project management colleagues, completing work independently and according to schedule. They can create new content from reliable sources; develop content from drafts received from content experts; and revise and improve various forms of content, as needed. The Writer has experience with health-related content — for example, topics like nutrition, mental health, chronic disease prevention, and maternal health — and is comfortable working with both short- and long-form content. The writer has experience working on projects involving multiple stakeholders and approvers and is able to accept and provide constructive feedback.

 Specifically the Writer will:

• Write, edit, and improve health-related content for a variety of public health and health care audiences, with a focus on: 

o   Plain language and readability, aiming for an eighth-grade reading level

o   Using an antiracist and social equity lens

o   Providing data sources 

• Develop content that is consistent with the agency’s mission, values, and initiatives, creating and honing the tone, style, and messaging of content across projects.
• Fact-check and revise content for precision, clarity, and technical and structural accuracy while adhering to standards of excellence for style.
• Work with staff that submit projects to improve their drafts’ content and messaging for the intended audience.
• Take on additional tasks as assigned by the Director of Publications.

Qualifications and Requirements:

• At least 5 years of writing or copywriting experience; experience with public-facing and/or health-related content is a plus
• Fluency with track changes in Word and Comment tools in Adobe
• Language-related bachelor’s degree, such as English, journalism, or comparative literature
• Previous experience working in areas related to English, journalism, technical writing, advertising, marketing, or publishing
• Ability to handle multiple priorities and competing deadlines in a fast-paced environment
• Salary: $70,000.00-$70,000.00

Preferred Skills: 

• Fluency with AP style; knowledge of AMA and other style guides is a plus
• Ability to adhere to style guides 
• Strong relationship management, problem-solving, and critical thinking skills
• Passion for and commitment to improving New York City’s public health

Additional Information: 

• This is a temporary grant-funded position ending in November 2027.
• This individual must reside in the tristate area (NY, NJ, CT) by their confirmed start date. 
• Preference may be given to individuals residing in New York City (five boroughs) or surrounding New York State counties. 
• This individual will be expected to work nonbusiness hours during emergencies.

PHS is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and encourages applications from women, people of color, persons with disabilities, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals, and veterans.