Noele Nelson, M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H., is the Chief of the Prevention Branch Chief in the Division of Viral Hepatitis at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). In this role she oversees vaccine research and policy, perinatal transmission, hepatitis B and C care cascade monitoring projects and provides support to state and local health departments toward viral hepatitis elimination. She is trained in Incident Management and has responded to multiple global and domestic public health emergencies, including serving in multiple roles in CDC’s COVID-19 response, serving as vaccine lead for hepatitis A outbreaks, Senior Medical and Science Advisor for the State Coordination Task Force during CDC’s Zika virus response and Team Lead in Port Loko, Sierra Leone for the STRIVE Ebola vaccine trial. Dr. Nelson maintains her clinical skills by practicing at the DeKalb County Board of Health Refugee Pediatric Clinic, and has published and presented work in the areas of bio-surveillance, epidemiology, outbreak response and vaccine research and policy.
Dr. Nelson joined the CDC in 2013. Previously, she worked on the Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC) faculty as a research assistant professor and attending physician, and was one of the principal investigators of a government-sponsored biosurveillance project.
Dr. Nelson graduated from MSIH in 2004 and completed her residency training in pediatrics at GUMC. She holds a Ph.D. in Epidemiology from BGU and a Master’s Degree in Public Health from Boston University.