Taos lucky to have Holy Cross Hospital

We are soooo blessed to have our hospital.

My name is Carl Gilmore and I’ve lived in Taos 41 years. For most of those years, I have been involved in ambulance service and emergency medicine or search and rescue activities. I was the first director of the Taos County Emergency Services department, which has received numerous accolades over the years. My late wife was a very active midwife in this community.

I’m writing to give my strong support and experienced perspective for our dear Holy Cross Hospital and everyone working and volunteering there. I have spent decades delivering patients there and observing the care delivered.

I have also had five stateof-the-art orthopedic surgeries there. (Trust me, my family understands orthopedic medicine.) I have received considerable physical therapy there, had many labs drawn. I know the radiation department as well as my house, and I’ve spent countless nights as patient or advocate in rooms on the floor. I received excellent compassionate management there for a traumatic brain injury (concussion) two years ago and most recently got a lifesaving diagnosis for cancer. Through my professional and business activities over the past 30 years I have a considerable knowledge of medicine throughout New Mexico and other states.

While understanding that no institution is perfect and improvement must be a goal, one thing is important to understand about our hospital and the medical care we have in Taos. It is very unusual in our country for as small a community as ours to have the breadth and depth of medical care we enjoy. I mean really rare, practically non-existent.

Compare the size of our community with others in this country. Examine the breadth of specialties, the quality of our providers and technicians. Understand that, without Holy Cross to support them, that network couldn’t exist. It is my understanding that our neighbor Española supports their hospital (which is a part of the largest hospital chain in New Mexico) with 4 mills tax on their larger economy. We support Holy Cross with only 1 mill. We frankly must to do more financially.

Small hospitals around the country are closing. The difficulties of keeping one afloat are incredibly daunting. With respect to everyone involved in healthcare in Taos and to our elected leaders, I make one plea. Remember that we want and need Holy Cross to continue to serve us. We want as much of our medical care delivered here, in our community, as possible.

We all live in Taos because we love it for all its quirks. We must join together and focus that love on Holy Cross and our medical community. Let our criticisms be constructive, our energy positive and our hearts be filled with respect and love for each other as we continue to accomplish that. Thank you. CARL GILMORE,