Dr. Jorge Mera, Whitney Essex

Jorge Mera, MD, FACP, is the Director of Infectious Diseases for Cherokee Nation Health Services (CNHS), the largest tribally operated health care system in the United States. He completed his fellowship in Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas and is Board Certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) in Infectious Diseases. During recent years Jorge’s efforts have been dedicated to organizing the Cherokee Nation HCV elimination program, as well as the HIV/HCV ECHO project. He is also the Director of the HIV clinic since 2012 and the Principal Investigator of the End the HIV Epidemic for the CNHS. He is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine of the Oklahoma State University Health Science Center and a Fellow of the American College of Physicians.

Whitney Essex, MSN, FNP-BC, is a Family Nurse Practitioner for Cherokee Nation Health Services. Mrs. Essex works in the Infectious Diseases Department, where she is the coordinator for the Cherokee Nation Hepatitis C Elimination program. She assists in the maintenance of general infectious diseases clinical services, as well as the provision of medical care for patients accessing HIV, PrEP, Hepatitis C, and other infectious diseases-related services.