by Todd Brogowski
RATON— With the arrival of COVID-19 in the desert southwest, local, county, and federal agencies are taking stock of their readiness for the possibility of a widespread outbreak of the virus. Some healthcare providers have only general plans for responding to COVID-19 (also known as the novel coronavirus or 2019-nCoV acute respiratory disease). Colfax County agencies have approached the possibility of an epidemic in a detailed fashion.
The Impact of COVID-19’s Precursors
Historically, there are several precursors to COVID-19. The most famous of these, the 1918 “Spanish Flu” pandemic, killed 50 million worldwide and 675,000 in the US, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In 1957, another influenza outbreak, the avian H2N2 virus, killed 1.1 million worldwide and 116,000 in the US. Just ten years later, the 1968 H3N2 virus (another form of bird flu) killed 1 million worldwide and 100,000 in the US. In 2009, the H1N1 virus, also a type of bird flu, killed between 150,000 and 575,400 worldwide and 12,469 in the US. The historical trend for pandemics is that of a declining casualty rate, particularly in the US.
Colfax County’s Preparations for COVID-19
Thomas Vigil runs Colfax County’s Office of Emergency Management and Floodplain Management from the art deco county government building on North 3rd Street in Raton. He was matter-of-fact regarding the county’s response plan for COVID-19. “We discussed the possibility of a viral outbreak for years,” Vigil explained. Vigil plans on treating COVID-19 in the same fashion as the plans Colfax County already has in place for dealing with an influenza outbreak. “It’s a partnership with healthcare providers, first responders, and the county itself,” said Vigil, “The only difference, really, is that we don’t have a vaccine for COVID-19 like we do with the flu.”
Colfax County’s partnership does not end with local healthcare providers. Vigil follows Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster mitigation guidelines for its communication with other agencies, and coordinates with the New Mexico Department of Homeland Security (NMDHS) and the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH). In turn, these agencies coordinate with the appropriate Federal agencies, such as the CDC, HHS, and the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS). By following this unified chain of command, public health and disaster response agencies minimize communication breakdowns caused by having multiple chains of command.
For its part, Vigil envisions the Colfax County Office of Emergency Management working with local healthcare providers so that they are appropriately staffed, trained, and equipped. “We have done annual training on how to respond to viral outbreaks and HAZMAT situations with Miners Colfax Medical Center,” Vigil stated, “If we had an identified case here in Colfax County, we would rapidly respond by identifying anyone who came into contact with the contagious person, advise self-quarantine, and begin testing to keep this thing wrangled in as best as possible.”
At Miners Colfax Medical Center (MCMC), CEO Bo Beames and Chief Nursing Officer Denise Daves are also confident that the hospital is prepared for COVID-19. Daves explained that the approach to COVID-19 is very similar to the prevention model for influenza, the primary difference being in the tests used to identify COVID-19. MCMC is one of the partner hospitals with the NMDOH Epidemiology and Response Division. In a March 4, 2020 teleconference, NMDOH laid out a plan for communications, hospital preparedness, and epidemiology that was adopted by partner hospitals. “We are making sure that we are the safest environment possible for providers and patients,” said Beames.
Beames and Daves explained that, while other regions have experienced shortages of COVID-19 testing kits, New Mexico has centralized its supply of testing kits. Hospitals, such as MCMC, communicate doctor-to-doctor with the epidemiology team of the NMDOH so that the state can determine whether there is a need for COVID-19 testing based on the evidence. In working with the NMDOH, Daves said, MCMC has trained for a “patient surge” event, such as the coronavirus, as recently as November 2019.
One segment of the population faces a higher risk than most for COVID-19: the elderly. Vigil said he has already coordinated with regional senior centers on how to identify and help respond to COVID-19. Far less detailed planning was evident at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facility in Raton, which handles a significant portion of the senior population in the region. Bobbi Gruner, Deputy Director of the Regional Office of Public Affairs for the VA, stated that the VA would coordinate with HHS and the CDC, but not state and local public health agencies. Vigil confirmed this, saying the VA “kind of does their own thing.”
A message for the public: don’t panic
Vigil advised the public to wash their hands often. “Wash your hands like you just peeled a bag of green chiles. Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.” Vigil does not think that public events should be canceled. He stressed that the county had already communicated with the medical staff of Philmont Scout Ranch, and has a plan if a scout or leader shows up with COVID-19 symptoms. Similarly, while the Red River Run Motorcycle Rally is not in Colfax County, Vigil will be monitoring it because of the number of motorcyclists traveling through the county.
One common concern shared by Beames, Bernal, Daves, and Vigil is the public response to the perceived danger of the COVID-19 virus. As Vigil explained, “People need to understand that this is nothing to panic over. Don’t hoard respirators and toilet paper.” Mary Lou Kern said that the public panic is her biggest concern as the Colfax County Manager. “More people have died from the flu this week than [from] COVID-19,” said Kern.
“Look,” said Vigil, “If you are sick, seek medical attention. Otherwise, treat this like the flu.” Beames and Daves stressed that people should be seeking reliable information from trustworthy sources, such as the CDC. They were critical of the national media’s inducement to panic. “We are very sensitive to the fear that people have,” Daves said, “but I wish the message of not panicking was a little more prevalent. Wash your hands. Don’t touch your face. If you are sick, stay home. If you are sick, don’t visit people that are immunocompromised.”