By Natela Cutter, DLIFLC Public Affairs
The first thing one notices when walking into the vaccination site at the Presidio of Monterey is the calm, organized manner of operations. People are smiling and soft, cheerful pop music plays in the background while staff in scrubs or uniforms scurry around, preparing vials and syringes.
Bruce Fairbanks’ excitement is palpable after he received his vaccine, emerging from the other side of the blue curtain. “That was so fast!” he said. Fairbanks is from the neighboring Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey. “I am elated, this is fabulous! I set the alarm three times last night.”
With the Presidio of Monterey California Medical Detachment being responsible for vaccinating most Monterey County federal agency members, including two National Guard installations and military retirees, the clinic has been preparing for months for the vaccination of up to 18,000 individuals against COVID-19.
Lt. Col. Cordero directs California Medical Detachment personnel as they set up for COVID vaccinations at the Weckerling Center February 2021. (Photo by Natela Cutter)
“It is all about process,” said Lt. Col. Chani Cordero, Chief Operating Officer at the Presidio of Monterey Health Services with CALMED, which also serves the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center, its largest customer, with a total student and civilian staff population of about 7,000.
“We looked at the (vaccination) processes from start to finish which allowed us to calculate the throughput,” explained Cordero about the planning. “We didn’t have long queues and everyone who made an appointment got the vaccine,” she said.
During the interview, Cordero’s cell phone continued buzzing. She would answer interview questions, reply to important calls, or swiftly walk over to check on the flow of vaccination and then come back to chat, all with a big smile on her face.
“It has been an honor to lead the vaccine effort for our area and has been personally rewarding,” said Cordero. “Being a part of the solution is why so many of us chose healthcare as a profession.”
For someone who has a chemistry degree, Cordero knew exactly what she wanted to do when she chose information technology for her military specialty, in combination with being a Medical Service Corps officer.
The COVID-19 vaccination vials are prepped for use by the California Medical Detachment at the Weckerling Center February 2021. (Photo by Marcus Fichtl)
“It’s a fun niche to be in,” Cordero says, of being focused on medical systems, devices and electronic health records which allows her to employ project management methodologies to help establish efficient processes.
“Workflows matter,” said Cordero, because “once the team establishes an efficient workflow with roles defined, this makes the operation run smoothly.” Her belief in communicating effectively with her team has also made a big difference.
The first thing Cordero does is huddle with her staff, in the middle of the large room. After a few hours, they are huddling again, this time peering over time sheets, looking at the number of vaccine vials or the number of ready-to-go syringes.
“Due to the short shelf life of the vaccine once punctured, I had our pharmacy tech constantly monitor the vials,” she explained, referring to Spc. Kacie Flores, whose job is to keep an eye on the exact time the vaccines were pulled from the portable freezers.
With the aid of Flores, the Moderna vials are removed from a freezing temperature of between 2 and 8 degrees and then thawed to room temperature for use. However, once thawed, the vials must be used within six hours or they will have to be discarded.
“This monitoring has ensured that we have not wasted one single dose. It is also imperative to have a waitlist (of people) ready to go in the appropriate phase just in case you have a few doses left over,” Cordero explained.
And what is most important to Cordero? Aside from serving her patients, it is her staff.
“I watch for burnout. The team that has been working this entire time on the COVID-19 pandemic issue over the past months, is the same team that is administering the vaccines. I have to ensure they have downtime. Pizza helps too,” she said, with a chuckle.
