People

John Sanders, MD, MPH&TM

Section Chief

Dr. Sanders provides overall strategic and scientific leadership for Wake Forest Infectious Diseases. His role focuses on aligning research excellence with clinical mission, advancing high‑impact scholarship, and fostering partnerships across the health system and public health agencies.

• Scientific vision and research strategy
  
• Faculty development and mentorship
  
• Integration of research, clinical care, and public health practice

Aimee Wilkin, MD, MPH

Associate Chief for Clinical Operations

Dr. Wilkin leads clinical operations and ensures that clinical programs, care delivery, and research efforts are cohesively aligned. She plays a central role in translating research insights into clinical workflows and supporting high-quality patient‑centered care.

• Clinical program oversight
  
• Operational integration across care settings
  
• Alignment of clinical priorities with research initiatives

Jessica Wells, MD

Fellowship Director

Dr. Wells leads the infectious diseases fellowship program, ensuring that fellows receive the best possible training in infectious diseases.

• Fellowship program oversight
  
• Fellowship program development
  
• Fellowship program evaluation

Research & Operations Leadership

Michael E. DeWitt

Research Administrative Leader

Michael DeWitt oversees the strategic coordination, administrative infrastructure, and execution of the Section’s research portfolio. He works closely with faculty, clinical leadership, and institutional partners to ensure that research initiatives are well-supported, compliant, and positioned for impact at scale.

His leadership spans: - Research operations and governance
- Portfolio management across basic, translational, and clinical research
- Interface between investigators, sponsors, and institutional partners

Project Management

Alyssa West, PhD Project Manager – Non‑Clinical Research

Leads project management for basic, translational, computational, public health, and implementation research. Focus areas include milestone tracking, cross‑team coordination, and support for investigator‑initiated studies.

Rica Abbott, MPH Project Manager – Clinical Trials

Provides operational leadership for clinical trials, supporting study start‑up, execution, and close‑out while ensuring adherence to regulatory and institutional requirements.

Clinical Trials Leadership

Caryn Morse, MD, MPH

Medical Director for Clinical Trials

Dr. Morse provides medical and scientific oversight for the clinical trials portfolio. She ensures that trials are conducted with the highest standards of scientific rigor, patient safety, and ethical integrity, while supporting efficient execution within real‑world clinical settings.

• Clinical trial oversight and governance
  
• Participant safety and protocol integrity
  
• Integration of trials within routine clinical care