Region 5 Public Health Services

Behavioral Health Services - Southwest Pathways is a cross-program unit in Public Health Resource Center comprised of behavioral health specialists, including licensed counselors, clinicians, nurses, and health educators. This multi-disciplinary team focuses on mental health and substance abuse issues common to different patient and client groups accessing public health services. Besides providing direct services in a safety-net to such persons who are uninsured or have low income, these staff members and others collaborate in multi-level community approaches including coalitions, councils, and consortia to enhance access to and continuity of care for persons with chronic behavioral health challenges. For more information, call (575) 528-6006.

Border Mobile Health Clinic - Takes health screenings and clinical preventive services to places and persons that lack access to care or who do not readily utilize existing services. The Mobile Unit may regularly visit certain outreach sites lacking clinical capacity or where high-risk persons congregate; also, it may be used to promote special events or respond to a crisis situation in the community. This field function focuses on hard-to-reach populations who may be marginalized from the healthcare system because of personal or institutional barriers to care and on responding to service delivery needs in times of community disaster or threats to health and safety. For more information, call (575) 528-5041.

Children's Medical Services (CMS) - Case management and services coordination including financial payment for eligible conditions of children approved by the CMS Medical Director. Provides specialty clinics for children 0-21 years of age with chronic medical conditions or at risk for developmental delay. Specialty Clinics include: endocrine diabetes/thyroid, pulmonary/asthma, cleft palate, dysmorphology/genetic & neurology.  To find out more about CMS diabetes related services for children and youth click here.  For more information call (575) 528-5077.

Clinical Services - Provides family planning services, immunizations, testing/treatment for tuberculosis and sexually transmitted diseases, breast and cervical cancer screening, HIV and Hepatitis C counseling/testing, and harm reduction with syringe exchange. Some local health offices provide prenatal care.  Staff assist private physician offices and community clinics to obtain free, federally funded vaccines for children and to monitor immunization coverage rates. For more information, call (575) 528-5023.

Community Wellness – The Special Projects Unit (SPU), which is a section of the program, has as its priorities primary (education, immunizations), secondary (screening, counseling, referral), and tertiary (care coordination, disease management) prevention for persons with chronic diseases, illnesses, or conditions and those at high risk of the same. Currently, the SPU staff of midlevel clinicians, registered nurses, health educators, and a registered dietitian focus primarily on adult diabetes, pediatric asthma, obesity, arthritis, depression, addictions and hepatitis C. SPU activities may be carried out in the Public Health Resource Center in Las Cruces and with outreach activities in satellite or off-site locations – schools, free clinics, homeless shelters, community centers, and jails. The program also has a Provider Contract Unit to manage/monitor agreements with private providers for perinatal case management (Families FIRST) and for breast and cervical cancer screening. For more information, call (575) 528-5063.

Dental Education and Sealants - Provides services to second and third graders in the southern portion of the state. Other services are given at: Cleft Palate Clinics, Head Start programs, Preschool Summer Programs, Health Fairs and Oral health presentations to WIC clients. For more information, call (575) 528-5757.

Diabetes Services – The Community Wellness Program in Las Cruces provides diabetes self management education (DSME) counseling and classes for adults.  A Registered Dietitian and a Registered Nurse with a credential as a Certified Diabetes Educator (CDE) are part of the healthcare team for this purpose.  For more information on DSME click here.  The Region 5 Children’s Medical Services (CMS) Program coordinates Specialty Clinics by Physician Endocrinologists and other staff from the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center in Albuquerque who visit Las Cruces and other Region 5 locations on a regular basis.  CMS Social Workers also offer medical case management services by for children and youth with a diagnosis of diabetes, both Type 1 and Type 2.

Disease Prevention - The program concentrates on the prevention and control of Infectious Diseases with outreach, surveillance, outbreak response, testing/treatment, contact follow-up, and referrals for sexually transmitted diseases, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, and other communicable diseases along with immunizations for hepatitis A/B. The team performs harm reduction counseling and facilitates needle exchange/disposal to reduce the risk the transmission of HIV and Hepatitis B/C. For more information, call (575) 528-5031.

Disease Surveillance & Emergency Preparedness- The disease surveillance program carries out field follow up on notifiable conditions of non-STD or TB nature which are officially reportable to the State.  It also conducts interviews and investigations for confirmed, suspect, or probable case to find the source and spread of infections such as hepatitis, food borne illnesses, and vaccine preventable diseases like pertussis or bacterial meningitis. The unit is also responsible for assuring that the Region has standard operating guidelines in place for plans regarding man-made and natural disasters or threats (e.g., bioterrorism, floods, fires, etc.). They facilitate the training of staff for this purpose and arranges drills and exercises to practice emergency response and recovery. In times of alert or activation, the unit provides technical assistance to the Regional or Local Incident Command Post and to Point of Distribution Sites (PODS) for mass prophylaxis or other community interventions. Staff collaborate with Local Emergency Planning Commit-tees (LEPCs) and County Offices of Emergency Management to protect community residents. For more information, call (575)528-5058.

Environmental Services - Are generally delivered by the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) (Tel. 524-6300) through regional field offices and by local government.  City or County entities or private contractors hired by these governmental units are usually responsible for vector control, animal control, and solid waste management.  State staff are usually engaged in regulatory functions concerning air and water monitoring and abatement along with issuing permits or licenses for such items as septic tanks, food facilities, underground storage tanks, landfills, concrete batch plants, swimming pools, and drinking water.  The NMED also inspects restaurants and, in close cooperation with the NMDOH through the Acute Disease Response Team, conducts food and water-borne illness investigations.  The Office of Border Health in Las Cruces employees an environmental epidemiologist; he may be reached at 528-5152.

Epidemiology - Conducts the official reporting to the State for notifiable diseases, conditions, and illnesses relative to morbidity and mortality statistics; performs special research that contributes to the study of health status of residents; and participates in outbreak control measures for communicable diseases. Offers technical assistance and consultation to persons and agencies involved in community health improvement processes. To contact the Regional Community Epidemiologist, call (575) 528-5074 and for the Nurse Epidemiologist, call (575) 528-5758.

Families FIRST - A prenatal care coordination program designed to assist Medicaid eligible pregnant women and children 0-3 years of age to gain access to medical, social and education services that are necessary to foster positive birth outcomes and promote healthy infants and children. For more information, call (575) 528-6015.

Health Promotion - Initiates & sustains primary prevention and wellness efforts that address public health concerns through multi-level community approaches: A) policy development; B) recruitment of local leaders to assist in mobilizing community residents; and C) health coalition building toward stable & functional partnerships are key essential strategies in this work. The Region 5 Health Promotion team received the New Mexico Public Health Association 2010 Achievement Award. For more information, call (575) 528-5061 or to read the Region 5 Health Promotion Strategic Plan, click here.

HIV Services - Are provided through the Community Collaborative Care Program (CCCP) in Las Cruces for the ten counties in Region 5.  Nurse Care Managers are available to assist persons in accessing and continuing care related to Ryan White Part B funding through the NMDOH by providing medical case management and care coordination.  An Eligibility/Benefits Counselor may assist clients in enrolling in the program and obtaining supportive services related to insurance, transportation, utilities, food, and housing.  Financial assistance from the Aid & Comfort Fund sponsored by a local non-profit organization may also be available to clients.  An Infectious Disease Physician volunteers at the CCCP once a week to provide specialty care to HIV/AIDS patients desiring to have one-stop services at a single location.  CCCP clients may receive other public health services located in the same building: for TB, hepatitis C, diabetes, medical nutrition therapy, substance use, and mental health along with partner services. For more information, call (575)-528-6037 or toll free at 1-866-668-0882.  To view the most recent CCC Update click here.

Preventive Medicine Clinic (PMC) – Is located in the Las Cruces Public Health Office.  It focuses primarily on reproductive health services for adolescents and adults.  Clinical care is provided for family planning, sexually transmitted diseases, and breast and cervical cancer screening.  Vaccinations for hepatitis A/B are available for at risk persons.  Specially trained health educators are available to assist patients with notifying sexual or needle-sharing partners of possible exposure to STDs, HIV or HCV.   Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) for sexual exposure to HIV and STD expedited partner therapy (EPT) for Chlamydia may be offered to qualified patients. 

Patients who are identified as being pregnant may receive assistance in applying for Medicaid and/or have a referral to perinatal case management services in the same building. One-to-one education and counseling regarding lifestyle risk factors such as nutrition, alcohol and tobacco are be given to patients as part of all services. In-house referrals to a registered dietician or nutritionist and a behavioral health therapist may be made for patients receiving PMC services.  Incidental primary care may be given to some patients as needed when they are uninsured or low income. 

Services are accessed by appointments at 575-528-5006 and on a walk-in basis from 8am-5pm, M-F. On Wednesdays the clinic has extended hours until 7pm.  No appointment is needed for free condoms, pregnancy testing, emergency contraception or Plan B, harm reduction with syringe exchange and overdose prevention with nasal Narcan (naloxone), and HIV/HCV counseling and testing.   Rapid testing for HIV antibody is available to persons with high risk behaviors.  TB testing for employment purposes and childhood immunizations are not offered at this site. 

Public Relations - A NMDOH Regional Public Information Officer (PIO) is located in Las Cruces. The PIO strives to ensure that policy and priority messages are conveyed clearly and consistently with the public and media by serving as a designated agency spokesperson. The PIO maintains the Region 5 Internet homepage and oversees the production of local public services announcements for radio and television in the region's recording studio. For more information, call (575) 528-5197.

School Health - Advocates for integrated primary health care and behavioral/mental health services, health promotion and disease prevention for adolescents and families that are school linked or school-based. Special focus is on teen pregnancy and suicide prevention. For more information, call (575) 528-5129.

Vital Statistics – In person application services and receipt of birth and death certificates are available in Doña Ana, Grant, Luna, Otero and Socorro counties on certain days of the week for selected hours.  For more information about scheduling, call (575) 528-5046 in advance of going to a health office.  Or go online at http://vitalrecordsnm.org//birth.shtml to find out more about obtaining birth certificates by mail or via the Internet.

Women, Infants and Children (WIC) – Enrolled parents and guardians in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for WIC participate in nutrition education and receive monthly vouchers with an electronic bank transfer (EBT) card redeemable for high nutrient foods.  Screens woman, infants and children under five years of age to identify health and nutrition problems and to make appropriate referrals for other services.  Eligible clients include: women who are pregnant, postpartum not breastfeeding up to 6 months, breastfeeding up to one year and infants/children up to five years old with a family income up to 185% of the federal poverty level.  For more information, call (575) 528-5047.

Region 5 Services Flyer (brochure) (PDF, 199KB)

Local Health Office Insert (trifold, front & back)

Client Satisfaction Survey