Making Health Happen

 Jessica is a Sr Health Educator at the Southern Nevada Health District in Las Vegas, NV. In this role, she works to coordinate stakeholders and coalition groups to build capacity and develop programming impacting harm reduction, overdose prevention, and injury prevention. She shapes these initiatives on over a decade of experience in substance use prevention and behavioral health. Jessica is an IC&RC Certified Prevention Specialist (CPS) through the Nevada Behavioral Health Association, a nationally Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES), and a certified instructor for SAMHSA's Substance Abuse Prevention Specialist Skills Training. She holds a Master of Public Health from Oregon State University, a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from Lewis & Clark College in Portland, OR, and is currently pursuing her doctorate in public health in Implementation Science at Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health. She is the President for the Nevada Public Health Association. In her personal time, Jessica enjoys playing at the park with her daughter Georgia (3 years) and cheering for the Vegas Golden Knights with her husband Tim.

Brandon Delise, Epidemiologist, SNHD

Brandon Delise has been Epidemiologist at the Southern Nevada Health District since 2018 where he leads efforts to monitor, develop, and improve surveillance within the fields of drug overdose and EMS. Prior to working as an Epidemiologist, Brandon was a Disease Investigation & Intervention Specialist at the Southern Nevada Health District, an HIV Specialist at Community Health of South Florida, an HIV/HCV Specialist at Perception Programs, and a public health educator in the US Peace Corps - Lesotho. Brandon received his MPH in Epidemiology from the University of Edinburgh. Brandon’s research interests include injury, trauma, and opioid use

Carmen Hua, Health Educator, SNHD

Carmen Hua is a Health Educator at the Southern Nevada Health District in her hometown, Las Vegas, Nevada. In this role, she currently coordinates the Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP). She holds a Master of Public Health as well as a Bachelor of Science in Community Health Sciences and Gerontology from the School of Public Health at the University of Nevada, Reno. Looking forward to learning something new everyday, no matter how big or small is Carmen's "Ikigai". Ask her what that means and she will ask that back to you! In her personal time, Carmen enjoys cooking new recipes with her mother, and spending time with her senior pups. 

Benjamin Ashraf, Epidemiologist, SNHD

 A relative newcomer to Nevada, Benjamin Ashraf received his doctorate in public health from Oregon State University in 2020, and his MPH from West Virginia University in 2012.   Benjamin joined the Office of Epidemiology at the Southern Nevada Health District in 2021 as an epidemiologist and has assisted with COVID-19 vaccination campaign since that time.  Benjamin has an interest in infectious disease prevention and teaching others about the importance of public health.

Maria Azzarelli, Manager of the Office of Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion 

Maria Azzarelli joined the Southern Nevada Health District’s (SNHD) Office of Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Tobacco Control Program (TCP) in 1999. In April 2018, Maria was promoted to Manager of the Office of Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion and continues in this position. Throughout her career Maria has participated in the development of numerous grant applications that have resulted in over 25 million dollars in funding. In 2017, Maria was nominated and elected into the UNLV Chapter of the Delta Omega Honor Society. Delta Omega recognizes outstanding achievement in the field of public health and reflects the dedication of an individual to increasing the quality of the field and the protection and advancement of the health of all people.  In 2018 she earned the Nevada Public Health Leadership Award. She is dedicated to reducing health disparities and advancing health equity. Maria was certified as Advanced High (Spanish-language Oral Proficiency) by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. She has been a Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES) since 1999.

Xaiver Foster, MBA, HCM, MEd