Our History
HealthFront, formerly known as Northern New Mexico Emergency Medical Services PC (NNMEMS), has a long history of providing Santa Fe and the communities of northern New Mexico with high-quality and compassionate emergency medical services dating back to 1976.
1974: Emergency Department (ED) coverage in Santa Fe started when local physician Dr. Roots contracted with St. Vincent to provide weekend coverage. He paid a shift fee to those who worked for him.
1975: ED coverage expanded to full time under the same contract. Dr. Ken Harrold was part of the initial group of four who started full-time coverage in January 1975. All shifts were 24 hours.
1976: NNMEMS, P.C. was formed and incorporated as a democratic emergency group in which all members owned shares. The corporation contracted with the hospital and was paid a percentage of what was billed. Members and subcontractors were paid based on how much they individually billed using relative value units (RVUs), a model that continued until 2018.
1976: St. Vincent's Hospital moved from downtown Santa Fe to its present location on St. Michaels Drive. Since then, the CHRISTUS St. Vincent patient census climbed to nearly 50,000 visits a year for the ED, making it the second busiest ED in New Mexico.
2006: NNMEMS PC began staffing the Emergency Department at the Los Alamos Medical Center. This partnership continued until 2013.
2008: CHRISTUS Health and St. Vincent's Hospital combined to form the CHRISTUS St. Vincent Regional Medical Center. NNMEMS continues to provide physician services in the Emergency Department.
2009: Northern New Mexico Emergency Medical Services, P.C. is renamed HealthFront, P.C. HealthFront continues the proud tradition of providing quality emergency healthcare services to CHRISTUS St. Vincent and the people of New Mexico.
2010: HealthFront, P.C. establishes a Physician Assistant program.
2017: HealthFront, P.C. is a democratic group of 13 Emergency Medicine Board Certified Physicians, 10 certified physician assistants, and a 5 member management team.
2018: CHRISTUS St. Vincent opens the Freestanding Emergency Department at the Entrada Contenta Health Center on Santa Fe's southside; the first facility of its kind in northern New Mexico. HealthFront provides physician coverage for this new facility. This partnership continued until 2020.
2020: The COVID-19 pandemic hits New Mexico. The rapidly changing clinical environment raises unprecedented challenges in the health care setting. HealthFront providers stand ready and able to serve our community with compassion and excellence during this trying time.
2024: HealthFront continues to advocate for the interests of patients and clinicians in the the post-pandemic landscape. In addition to providing exceptional care to our patients, we continue to work together to identify opportunities for advancement in the headwinds of healthcare.
