She started her school nurse trajectory in Alamogordo 25 years ago and is the Executive Director of Health Services for this district of 15 schools. Over the course of her career, her practice has shifted. From a student-centric view within the school environment, it has evolved to address the health and wellness of that child’s family. “Keeping kids in school” as a set-up for lifetime success is core to her practice, which includes building rapport with their families, promoting the value of education, and improving health and well-being.
Enter COVID-19, and the state’s Public Health Emergency order of March 20, 2020. School buildings were closed, classes were suddenly moved online, and 14 Alamogordo school nurses were sent home to work without knowing how to do the critical work ahead. As devastating as this time was and grueling work for a couple of years, new opportunities began to emerge when old brick-and-mortar processes and culture did not drive the day. COVID-19 broke down many walls and silos, and old beliefs about what was and was not possible. It also opened doors to new partnerships and the forging of common goals.
Over the course of 2020-2022, Mrs. Patch and her Health Services team went into hyperdrive. “We needed to do something positive in the crazy.” Taking advantage of some early funding opportunities opened by the Pandemic, leveraged with donated goods and services by many organizations coming together in her community, a vision for several programs became a reality. She is convinced none of these successes would have happened had there not been a nurse and health assistant at every one of her 15 schools. This is not the case in many of the state school districts.
To provide outreach and health services to kids and their families at home, they acquired an old Winnebago RV and renovated it into a mobile health clinic. “Flo,” as she is named (for Florence Nightingale), is now a bright black and gold vehicle in the school colors. A giant tiger (school mascot) in a nursing cap is painted on the side with “One Community, Every Child, Endless Possibilities” looming in large print. Promotional materials announce, “The School Nurse is Coming to a Neighborhood Near You!” Flo has continued to expand to bring outreach services, including COVID testing, immunizations, mental health checkups, vision and hearing screenings, dental, and more. At the height of the Pandemic, there were several months when Otero County did not have a Public Health Nurse. She collaborated with the Department of Health to assist with COVID testing and vaccination outreach efforts, and over 10,000 tests and countless vaccinations were provided via Flo and her team.
Her mental health therapists developed the HOPE team- Healing-Opportunities-Prevention-Encouragement providing student outreach around depression and suicide prevention. A Bed for Every Child- Giving Children a Place to Dream is a collaboration with Otero County Corrections, where beds are made and donated to many children who do not have one. Their Fresh Start program evolved after discovering that some children were being bullied for having body odor. Discovering that many more did not have access to washing machines at home led to creating access to laundry machines at school, where students were also taught how to wash and dry their clothes. A Healing Hearts Grief Camp launched in 2022 for children and their families. Various clothing and food drives evolved into the Tiger Care Center carrying clothing, toiletries, pantries, prom-related formal wear, laundry supplies, etc.
As the need for access to telehealth resources evolved into a necessity, she developed a collaboration with Gerald Champion Hospital’s urgent care clinic. Every nurse’s office in every school is equipped with digital health monitoring equipment, and a child can receive an urgent care visit in consultation with the hospital providers from their school via telehealth. This supports on-site access to services such as testing and treating infections such as COVID, Strep, RSV, and other health interventions with minimal absence from their education time. Parents also have access to participate in the urgent care visit remotely.
The need is great, and more programs are on the horizon for this community. A Wellness Center for Staff is also evolving. She hopes to develop more resources for their homeless students. A highlight of her career was being recognized for this work by the American Nurses Association with their Public Health Service Award in Washington, D.C., in 2022.
First in her family to go to college, she started her nursing career in the 1960s at Women’s Hospital diploma nursing school in Philadelphia, one of the few hospital diploma nursing schools in the country that took students of color in the early 1960s. This nursing program is one of the oldest in the USA and was started in 1861 by Florence Nightingale’s St Thomas in London. During that time, the Women’s Hospital of Philadelphia still practiced segregation policies. There were entire patient units where students and nurses of color were not permitted to go, much less practice. Her instructors, all from the dominant culture, often used teaching and learning approaches unfamiliar to her and her fellow students. She quickly learned that culture can influence many aspects of life, from attitude and beliefs to access, tools for success, and health. Even views of what “professionalism” had to look like could differ.
Dr. Billops never considered herself “poor,” as everyone on the reservation had the same standard of living. She just considered city folk as culturally different. Those in the city had electricity and cars, while her people had farming and animals to care for. She considered herself fortunate that their life was not nearly as hectic as city folks. Dr. Billops developed a solid commitment to cultural diversity in healthcare, a cornerstone of her practice. She developed a strong belief system that sees everyone as a unique creation of God with a distinct soul. This belief fuels her deep respect for all cultural beliefs. Her love for learning extends to gaining as much knowledge as possible about her patients, friends, and other cultures, reinforcing her spirit of inquiry. She also deeply integrates her traditional training as a Medicine Woman, certified by the Navajo Nation.
Dr. Billops has been part of the New Mexico nursing community for 45 years. She went from a diploma graduate to advanced practice as one of the early graduates from the state’s UNM Clinical Nurse Specialists (family practice) program to her Doctor of Nursing Practice. She brings her life learnings to her clinical and educator practice. She taught nursing at UNM Gallup for four years, Northern NM College for 14, and the University of Phoenix, ABQ for 8. Dr. Billops is known for her skill in integrating storytelling into her teaching, using it as a powerful tool to connect with her students and enrich their learning experience. Her current practice involves Nursing Home recertification of persons living in Intermediate Care Facilities where she sees 20-25 patients/month and her weekly visits to help out in El Rito and Ojo Caliente.
Additionally, she remains a long-standing active member of the NM Nurses Association, Sigma Theta Tau, and the NM American Indian Nurses Association where she continues to mentor many of her former nursing students. Dr. Billops is an International Transcultural Nursing Society officer, a National Spiritual Care Association member, a Chaplain with the International Fellowship of Chaplains, and an NM Medical Response Corps member. She received Nurse of the Year in 2021 in community health for her work during COVID, giving over 1000 shots and traveling to far-flung hospitals and clinics to distribute PPE and hand sanitizer for the Department of Health when such products were scarce and in short supply.
Pat McIntire, MS, BSN, RN, FNP-BC, GNP-BC– Pat McIntire has been part of the New Mexico nursing community since 1990, when she and her husband purchased a cattle ranch in Silver City. She credits her grandmother, a teacher, and her mother, who became an RN in 1945, inspiring her to become a nurse. As the eldest in her family, caregiving came naturally to her, as she helped her mother through a prolonged illness and supported her younger siblings.
Mrs. McIntire received her BSN from the University of Illinois in 1969 and her MS from the University of Colorado in 1972. She began her career in a Denver hospital, working in critical care units, advancing to head nurse of the intensive care unit, and later serving as a hospital’s Education Coordinator. Her career path took a new turn when she read about rural nurse practitioner practice in Colorado Nurse. Inspired, she returned to the University of Colorado in 1982, earning her certification as a nurse practitioner. Her practice expanded to serving rural Colorado community clinics, filling in for physicians during their time off and working in the Diagnostic and Treatment Center in a Denver Hospital.
In response to the community needs of Grant County, Western New Mexico University (WNMU) established an Associate Degree in Nursing program in 1989. Mrs. McIntire joined the faculty before the first class graduated. She became affectionately known as the “Ogre,” and played a pivotal role in creating the curriculum and training future nurses. Her 24-year tenure as a beloved instructor saw the program become the first at WNMU to incorporate Interactive Television (ITV) classes, significantly improving rural students’ access to nursing education. She retired from teaching in 2014 but continued her rural nurse practitioner practice twice a week until 2021, leaving a lasting impact on the nursing community.
What has kept her passion for nursing alive? Viewing the glass as half full no matter the challenge, self-encouragement, and the ability to witness her positive impact on others’ lives. She credits her critical care experience with teaching her to think independently and become a leader. One of her favorite quotes is by Teddy Roosevelt: “Believe you can, and you are halfway there.”
Even in retirement from patient care, Mrs. McIntire’s commitment to the nursing profession and her community remains unwavering. She has been the Geronimo District Advancement Chairman, helping over 100 young men become Eagle Scouts. She actively participates in various healthcare boards, including the Gila Regional Medical Center’s Board of Trustees, where she has been the sole nurse serving. In September, a second nurse from the local community, a WNMU graduate was also appointed to the Board of Trustees. At the time of her interview, she was one of just three nurses in New Mexico currently serving on a hospital board, a testament to her enduring dedication.
