HCMC leads the way into Phase 1B of vaccine distribution

As New Mexico moves into Phase 1B of the COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan, Holy Cross Medical Center is rising to meet the challenges.

Wednesday ( Jan. 13), the hospital moved it’s vaccination center from the hospital grounds to Taos Middle School. The move is designed to help distribute (Pfizer) vaccines to those in the Phase 1B bracket, which includes educators.

The Holy Cross team began making the move as soon as the state announced the advancement from Phase 1A last week. “We plan on doing 350 vaccinations on Wednesday ( Jan. 13) and 350 more on Thursday ( Jan. 14) to teachers,” said Bill Patten, CEO of Holy Cross Medical Center.

Holy Cross received its first vaccine doses Dec. 14 and they were distributing them by Dec. 15. The first week, they gave out 160 doses. As of last Monday ( Jan. 11), five weeks in, HCMC had distributed 1,547 primary doses of the Pfizer vaccine and 156 booster doses.

“That first week, we really just showed that we could handle the distribution,” said Tamara Brown, pharmacy director and the person in charge of coordinating vaccine deliveries to Holy Cross with the NM Department of Health. “After that, we were able to get really the max amount of vaccines that the state would give us.”

Preparedness has been the key to effective pandemic response, said Patten. “We lined up for the paperwork and we lined up for the freezers. This was really something we were positioning for, for a long time.”

Patten said that he believes Holy Cross Medical Center was uniquely prepared to respond to the pandemic because vaccine distribution drills have been a part of Holy Cross’s training for a number of years already.

“We have been practicing how to do mass vaccinations for a couple of years using our normal flu shot process,” said Patten. “There were unusual twists with the COVID vaccine that we had to adjust to, but overall, this is something that Holy Cross has been prepared for for the last couple of years.”

However, preparedness will only get a hospital so far. They need to have a competent and resourceful figure at the helm to help navigate the state and federal regulations involved in such a massive effort. Brown said that is the area where Patten has excelled. “We owe all of that preparedness to Bill (Patten) really.”

For Patten’s part, he said the initial relief and joy felt at the announcement of a vaccine was somewhat tempered by the realization of the immense task that lay before HCMC.

“I was, of course, thrilled and overjoyed [when the vaccine was announced],” said Patten. “But really the biggest challenge was being able to navigate the state and federal bureaucracy so that we could optimize our ordering patterns.”

As an example, Patten points to the now-famous “extra dose” in each vial of Pfizer vaccine. Pfizer informed vaccine providers that there were five doses in each vial. “Well we quickly realized there was room for at least one more dose and we were reluctant to throw away what appeared to be perfectly good vaccine,” Patten said.

Within 48 hours, the FDA had announced that it was safe to give the extra dose. Patten made sure that the new rules were implemented immediately and was able to pull 30 extra doses in week two from the same number of vials.

Both Patten and Brown said that the situation would remain fluid as the state rolls through Phase 1B of vaccine distribution. According to Dr. Tracie Collins, secretary-designate of the NMDOH, New Mexico will most likely be ready for Phase 1C by early February. Phase 1C includes all essential workers from those in transportation and logistics to public safety and food service. To register for your vaccine and to find more information about issues such as side effects and setting up appointments for booster doses, visit