System Software Programmer - Project Lead(RHAPSODY)

Job: IT - DPH - System Software Programmer - Project Lead

Location : Columbia SC

Job ID: 8373

The State of South Carolina Department of Public Health is looking for - System Software Programmer - Project Lead

Why is this position open: This is a backfill position to complete outstanding work items, support Lab and Disease Surveillance integration with an eCR and ELR focus, help with CDC Data Modernization Efforts, and provide customer support and guidance.

Will close to submissions on 10/20/2025 5:00PM EST.

Interview Process: One initial round of Teams video interviews will be scheduled for the top 3 candidates after the close of the posting date. If no candidate is selected a second round of interviews will be conducted.

Duration of the Contract: 12 Months

Possibility for Extension: Yes

Work Location: 100% Remote, Monday - Friday.

Candidate Location: Open to Nationwide US candidates, must work in Eastern Standard Time Zone

Full job description is in the attached file.

Additional details:

Key duties and Responsibilities

The candidate will work closely with other members of the Systems Integration applications team and various programs within the Public Health Deputy Area. The candidate should be self-motivated, team-oriented, work under limited supervision, and respond to priority tasks. The candidate must be able to independently research and design processes, create specifications, develop, lead testing, perform code reviews, actively engage with the team and stakeholders, attend meetings, provide guidance, and respond promptly. Ideal candidates will have experience with electronic Case Reporting (eCR) and Electronic Laboratory Reporting (ELR) formats, processing, and integration.

Participate in a team comprised of DPH and solution implementation staff for Systems Integration related planning, design, configuration, and conversion / rewrite of existing processes, code, and functionality in/into the Rhapsody Environment. Will coordinate with assigned IT Section Manager and Team Lead on daily assignments / tasks. Will coordinate and collaborate with contract and vendor staff as well as existing DPH staff and other IT professionals working with the Office of Information Technology. Ensure assignments are completed accurately and on-time, assist with problem resolution, mitigate issues, provide solutions, communicate, and escalate as needed to management, and report progress to manager.

Will advise Staff on code conversions, route and configuration changes and enhancements, process improvements, software updates and maintenance. Work with vendors and staff on deliverables, troubleshooting and conversion of current processes to Rhapsody. Includes rewriting existing solutions to conform to best practices and updated coding standards and to improve efficiency, performance, and maintenance.

Required Skills

5 years of RHAPSODY INTEGRATION ENGINE (V6+)

5 years of Symphonia Mapping Language (SML)

5 years of HL7 (V 2.3.1 - 2.5.1; ORU & ORM Message Types)

2 years XML / XSD / XPATH

3 years SQL (including advanced join statements)

5 years of JAVASCRIPT

2 years of WEB SERVICES (SOAP)

Preferred Skills

Rhapsody Certification

ECR / EICR / RR / CDA / CCDA

1+ year of Windows Server OS Administration Experience

Education Requirement

Bachelor's Degree or 9 years of equivalent experience

What types of staffing challenges or headaches have you experienced in the past?

• Suppliers misleading contractors on remote work
• Suppliers submitting candidates over the desired bill rate
• Resumes that don't match work experience related to the posting.
• Stated years of experience related to a technology cannot be identified on the resume.
• Contractor trying to change schedule once hired

suppliers not ensuring visa is valid for duration of project

Company / Department culture (why do you enjoy working for the company selling points for potential candidates):

At the South Carolina Department of Public Health (DPH), we're committed to fostering healthy lives and communities. Our team of over 2,900 professionals operates across 90 offices statewide, boasting a rich diversity of talent united by a shared dedication to impactful work. As stewards of public health, we have a proud history of attracting and retaining top-tier individuals who seek fulfilling careers that directly impact people's well-being.

We're on the lookout for self-driven individuals who thrive in collaborative settings, capable of working autonomously while also being responsive to priority tasks. Crucially, candidates must excel at cultivating effective relationships with colleagues from various backgrounds and across all levels of the organization. Join us in making a meaningful difference in South Carolina's health and environment.

Why is this position open (new role, increased work load, new dept, resignation, promotion)?

If backfill Position What separated the candidate you initially selected from all the other resumes presented?

This is a backfill position to complete outstanding work items, support Lab and Disease Surveillance integration with an eCR and ELR focus, help with CDC Data Modernization Efforts, and provide customer support and guidance.

Scope of the project:

Candidates should be self-motivated, team-oriented, work under limited supervision, and respond to priority tasks. Candidates must be able to independently research and design processes, create specifications, develop, lead testing, perform code reviews, actively engage with the team and stakeholders, attend meetings, provide guidance, and respond promptly.

Additional staff are needed to assist current staff with backend processing and ELC Modernization Projects. This will include requirements gathering with customers, providing technical advice, time and effort estimates, and project documentation including status reporting. Ideal candidates will have experience with electronic Case Reporting (eCR) and Electronic Laboratory Reporting (ELR) formats, processing, and integration. Expected work includes process development / automation, webservice calls, parsing various data formats (xml, csv, SOAP, HL7, etc.), and route development. The developer will help with testing, validations, user acceptance testing, deployment, and post implementation support. The focus will be on enhancing custom data management and transformation processes in the Rhapsody software, to set up new routes and processes needed for new data provisions to the CDC, and to create proactive monitoring processes for immediate identification and resolution of data processing issues. Ensure systems are following industry best practices to ensure strategic initiatives and compliance with federal and state regulatory laws and ensure business continuity.

This position will be a part of the team responsible for supporting critical systems and environments used by the Public Health and Lab, Disease Surveillance, and day-to-day operations.

Daily Duties / Responsibilities:

The candidate will work closely with other members of the Systems Integration applications team and various programs within the Public Health Deputy Area. The candidate should be self-motivated, team-oriented, work under limited supervision, and respond to priority tasks. The candidate must be able to independently research and design processes, create specifications, develop, lead testing, perform code reviews, actively engage with the team and stakeholders, attend meetings, provide guidance, and respond promptly. Ideal candidates will have experience with electronic Case Reporting (eCR) and Electronic Laboratory Reporting (ELR) formats, processing, and integration.

Participate in a team comprised of DPH and solution implementation staff for Systems Integration related planning, design, configuration, and conversion / rewrite of existing processes, code, and functionality in/into the Rhapsody Environment. Will coordinate with assigned IT Section Manager and Team Lead on daily assignments / tasks. Will coordinate and collaborate with contract and vendor staff as well as existing DPH staff and other IT professionals working with the Office of Information Technology. Ensure assignments are completed accurately and on-time, assist with problem resolution, mitigate issues, provide solutions, communicate, and escalate as needed to management, and report progress to manager.

Will advise Staff on code conversions, route and configuration changes and enhancements, process improvements, software updates and maintenance. Work with vendors and staff on deliverables, troubleshooting and conversion of current processes to Rhapsody. Includes rewriting existing solutions to conform to best practices and updated coding standards and to improve efficiency, performance, and maintenance.

Specific duties and responsibilities will include but are not limited to the following:

• Monitor routes and production processing to ensure proper data flow and response times using Rhapsody UI and other tools
• Help to perform and automate daily maintenance processes
• Troubleshoot and resolve processing issues
• Correct and reprocess errors
• Advise on monitoring practices, thresholds, and notifications
• Support Rhapsody upgrades and new environment configuration
• Ensure maximum system uptime for critical components to ensure business continuity.
• Work with program area staff to perform gap analysis, gather and document functional requirements, and create necessary processes
• Perform complex programming functions, assistance, and technical advice including design architecture, configuration, writing, testing, and documentation to complex programming of agency computer systems as assigned.
• Ability to plan, organize, review, implement associated project milestones to completion.
• Create new and update existing Rhapsody routes to handle new data elements and formats creating the necessary output for upload into testing, lab, and surveillance systems as well as report to the CDC
• Upgrade, modify, troubleshoot, review, and support disease surveillance interfaces including eCR and ELR processes
  • Create / modify routes that will import eCR data into our Disease Surveillance System (the Conduent Maven System using Maven Integration Format)
• Assist with data migrations and database migration related code changes, testing, and validation
• Modernization of legacy computer systems/processes to Rhapsody routes and logic. Review existing code for rewrite into Rhapsody routes.
• Perform / participate in code reviews for authored, team written, and vendor suggested changes and implement reviewed changes into Production
• Advise the team on best practice and techniques. Mentor technical team on advanced topics.
• Assist the team, DPH staff, and vendors to on board providers and partners to utilize Rhapsody supported services like HL7 electronic lab reporting (ELR), electronic test orders and resulting (ETOR), electronic case reporting (eCR), and InterPartner data sharing.
• Prepare and maintain system documentation and architecture diagrams for processes assigned (new and existing).
• Modification / rewrite of existing processes and creation of new processes to be compliant with agency security requirements and following industry best standards

The position will be utilized for 40 hours per week for the duration of this project. The selected candidate may be able to work flexible hours during the week when needed to provide coverage on weekends. Total week hours (to include the weekend) should not exceed 40 unless approved in advance (i.e., hours worked on Saturday and/or Sunday would be deducted from hours worked Mon-Fri). This position would need to be available to support critical systems during business hours, on off hours, and weekends.

The candidate will work closely with the Systems Integration Section Manager to identify, prioritize, and schedule workload and implementation to IT standards and procedures. The candidate will work closely with customers and subject matter experts for the system design, migration to the new framework, and testing.

This will also include compliance with DPH security policy/procedures as well as integrating systems when possible to streamline staff workflows, user security, and data correction.

Module support of the project.

• DPH will require that selected personnel sign the DPH confidentially agreement and/or Business Associate (BA) agreement if applicable. All web services must be secure.
• DPH will not accept any offers including an "up-lift" charge. The rate paid per consultant must not exceed the maximum rate established for this position described in the State contract terms.
• Follow agency IT Standards, policies, and procedures to include documentation.
• All source code (compiled and un-compiled) will become the sole property of the South Carolina Department of Public Health. Any source code, data, product, or functionality resulting from this SOW or previously owned/developed by DPH will remain the sole property of DPH and is not to be incorporated into the core product of any vendor's application. Any modifications and interfaces developed under said contract will not be used by the contractor for any independent project of the contractor or published or publicized by the contractor without written permission of DPH.
• DPH has the final say on all programming choices.

DPH Support:

DPH will provide:

• All required information including formulas, data, and mechanisms to check output.
• Staff to assist with any application or data questions.
• Conference rooms and scheduling for any application demos.
• A virtual workstation with required software.

Required Skills (rank in order of Importance):

1. Rhapsody Integration Engine (v 6+)
2. Symphonia Mapping Language (SML)
3. HL7 (v 2.3.1 - 2.5.1; ORU & ORM Message Types)
4. XML / XSD / XPATH
5. SQL (Including Advanced Join Statements)
6. Javascript (ecma/e4x)
7. Web Services (SOAP)
8. Critical thinking skills and problem resolution
9. Experience with security and data classification related to CDC, HIPAA, CJIS, PHI, PII

Ability to deal effectively with the needs of technical peers, technical and user management, users, vendors, and staff members, and to communicate clearly and effectively in spoken and written form

Preferred Skills (rank in order of Importance):

1. ECR / EICR / RR / CDA / CCDA
2. Windows Server OS Administration
3. Large Scale Integration and Design in Healthcare Environment
4. Public Health / Disease Surveillance Systems / LIMS experience
5. Large Scale Dataset Manipulation / Migration
6. LOINC / SNOMED
7. DevOps / JIRA
8. Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC)
9. Visio / Flow Diagrams

Ability to establish positive working relationships with technical staff, customers and others involved in data-centric management.

Required Education: Bachelor's or Master's Degree in a relevant field of work or equivalent work experience.

Preferred Certifications:

Rhapsody Certification (Required: Please Indicate Certification Level and/or N/A).