Merit Health Wesley Welcomes Polk

11/3/2026

Hattiesburg, MS (11/03/2026) - Brad Polk, R.N., MSN recently joined Merit Health Wesley as chief operating officer. Polk has more than 20 years of experience driving operational excellence, patient safety and staff engagement. He has worked at Merit Health hospitals for the majority of those years.

Most recently, he served as chief nursing officer at Merit Health Rankin, having previously served as chief nursing officer at Merit Health Madison and assistant chief nursing officer at Merit Health Central. From 2005 to 2008, Polk worked at Merit Health Wesley as a critical care nurse, serving patients in the ICU and CVR. His clinical foundation includes extensive experience as a critical care nurse, flight nurse and paramedic.

Polk earned his Master of Science in nursing from Walden University, Bachelor of Science degrees in nursing and health-related professions from William Carey University, and an associate degree in applied science from Jones County Junior College.

To learn more about Merit Health Wesley leadership, visit https://www.merithealthwesley.com/leadership.

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