Our Work

The health priorities that the Health Council is currently working on are teen pregnancy prevention, diabetes and obesity, and interpersonal violence. In addition, the health Council partners with health councils in Mora and Guadalupe counties to create the MSG Behavioral Collaborative.

Teen Pregnancy Prevention

Chair: Rhonda Gutierrez, Health Promotion, Department of Health
Meeting: Every second Tuesday of the month at 8 A.M. at San Miguel Heath Council Office at 501 S. Grand (behind the red caboose).
Purpose: The Teen Pregnancy Prevention Committee focuses on bringing awareness to county residents on teen pregnancies; Causes and consequences, cost to the county and the teen parent, and to collaborate with schools, agencies and individuals working with teens, and plan activities to increase collaboration, identify and fill gaps in services, leverage resources, and raise awareness.

Current Activities:

• As part of a social work internship, Tanya Gonzales made classroom presentations to area high and junior high school students about her experiences as a teen mom. She expanded her presentations to include factual information on STDs and HIV, and on healthy relationships. She currently contracts with the San Miguel Health Council to provide about 110 presentations per school year in schools in the county. She has also been contracted by Tucumcari and Santa Rosa schools to make presentations.
• As a result of high rates of risky male behavior, lack of services targeting males, and a desire by the young men for information tailored to them, the Health Council applied for and received a grant to begin a male involvement program targeting teen males through peer education. The South Valley Male Involvement Project will be working with the Las Vegas Youth Commission and made presentations to both West and City School Districts in the first week in April.
• Additionally, the Health Council co-sponsored the Believe in Girls Conference in the summer of 2007.

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Interpersonal Violence

Chair: Therese Melton, 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office, Victims’ Assistance Unit
Meeting: Every 3rd Tuesday of the month at 4 PM at the Health Council Office at 501 S. Grand (behind the red caboose).
Purpose: The Interpersonal Violence Committee focuses on bringing awareness to county residents on relationship violence, including child abuse, domestic violence, and sexual assault. This incorporates causes and consequences, cost to the county and the affected family. The committee collaborates with schools, agencies and individuals working with these issues, and plan activities to increase collaboration, identify and fill gaps in services, leverage resources, and raise awareness.

Current Activities:

• Working on a media campaign so that every agency/organization involved with the committee picks a month and then creates, with health council direction, public service announcements and join talk shows to raise awareness of interpersonal violence and what the agency/organization is doing to address the problem.
• Working on creating business sized cards that will be dispersed within the county regarding interpersonal violence – statistics and facts, signs of violence and who to contact for help.

Past Accomplishments – Due to the work by this committee, the Tri-County Family Justice Center at D Bibb Industrial was opened. The center treats families impacted by domestic violence and currently the center is planning on a new location and has expanded services into More and Guadalupe Counties.

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Diabetes and Obesity

Chair: Michell Aragon, Las Vegas City Schools Cardinal School-based Wellness Center
Meeting: Every 4th Friday of the month at 10 A.M. at Sierra Vista Elementary in the School Based Health Clinic 475 East Legion, Las Vegas.
Purpose: The Diabetes Committee focuses on bringing awareness to county residents on diabetes; signs and symptoms, risk factors and consequences, and to collaborate with schools, agencies and individuals working with diabetes and plan activities to increase collaboration, identify and fill gaps in services, leverage resources, and raise awareness.

Current Activities:

• Ensuring that diabetes health providers are identified in the Resource Guide, which includes a one-page quiz on determining risk factors for diabetes.
• First year Diabetes Fair in April, 2008. The fair is designed to educate children with either Type 1 or Type 2 Diabetes and their parents.
• Sponsor diabetic cooking classes taught by Jeannie McKinley, and education on managing your diabetes, usually taught by Dr. Ruiz. For an up-to-date schedule and other information, feel free to call the health council office.

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MSG - Local Collaborative

County Leads:

• Mora – Antonio Medina
• Guadalupe – JoAnn Rivera-Velasquez
• San Miguel – Yolanda Cruz
• Consumer Representative – Shela Silverman
• Family Representative – Barbara Gurule
• Provider Representative – Lorraine Esquibel
• Total Community Approach – Coordinator – Marino Rivera
• MSG/TCA Assistant – Kristy Tapia

Meeting: MSG meets bimonthly and locations vary. February and August at Mora, April and October at Las Vegas, and June and December at Santa Rosa. For exact locations and times, call Kristy Tapia at 617-5571 or email at www.msg@desertgate.com.

Purpose: The overall purpose of Local Collaborative is to develop strong local voices to help guide Behavioral Health planning in New Mexico.

Goals:

• To have a single Behavioral Health System in New Mexico.
• The creation of a consumer, youth, and family driven system.
• A Behavioral Health System in which available resources are coordinated and managed effectively. At both state and local levels, the challenges of balancing limited services are being addressed by collaborating, sharing strategies, solutions, and resources in the hope of producing a better quality of life for those with Behavioral Health needs in New Mexico.

Current Activities: At the beginning of 2008, the MSG received notification that the group was awarded a grant for $700,000 to implement the Total Community Approach (TCA) grant to be started in Las Vegas with training activities in Mora and Guadalupe Counties. To learn more about TCA, go to their website at www.msg-group.info. The project is intended to treat substance abuse and co-occurring disorders in individuals by treating the whole person. It is a consumer driven project with outpatient treatment options from counseling, oriental medicine, case managers known as promotoras, and various other options.

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