St. Luke's Health Care

Did you know being vaccinated before flu activity begins helps protect you once flu season starts? According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), it takes about two weeks after a vaccination for the body’s immunity response to respond fully, protecting you from getting the flu.

Flu viruses are worse during the fall and winter months often gaining momentum in October and November. Most of the time, flu activity peaks between December and March but can last as late as May.

We are here to help you avoid the flu this year. We are offering FREE flu shots on two dates:

Tuesday, September 13, from 9:00 a.m. to 12 noon

Wednesday, September 21, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 pm

 Walgreens staff members from the El Paseo store are giving flu shots to help protect you from the influenza this season.

Do not miss these opportunities to stay healthy!

*The annex is located on the Mesilla Valley Community of Hope campus, to the left of El Caldito Soup Kitchen.

 **If you have insurance, please bring your card.

For the first time in our 26-year history, we are seeing children under the age of 18!!

Beginning September 7, we will stay open every Wednesday until 6 pm. Dorothy Portillo, St. Luke’s Family Nurse Practitioner, will deliver friendly, top-notch health care services to anyone who comes to the clinic, but we are especially holding space open for children Wednesday afternoon and evening.

Results of a survey at area agencies determined that families with children would appreciate afternoon and evening hours so their children can access services after school. Depending on need, we may expand our hours even later.

Our other bilingual staff will join Dorothy to help see patients and sign them up for Medicaid if they are eligible.

Visit us on September 7!

Get a healthy snack and something to drink!

Thanks to the Children’s Reading Foundation, kids get a free book!

Come by and meet Dorothy!

Bring the whole family and come to our health fair!  Join us on Saturday, June 18th from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. 

We’ll be at St. Luke’s Annex, next to El Caldito Soup Kitchen, on 999 W. Amador Ave., in Las Cruces.

Come learn fun ways to stay healthy!  Ever planted a container garden? Tried a zumba class? Had a dental health screening? Ready to learn about nutrition, healthy eating and diabetes care?

Face painting for the kids plus games and prizes! Enter a raffle to win them a bicycle and helmet!

Vendors will be available for one-on-one discussions from New Mexico Legal Aid, the ACLU, various health insurance companies, Medicaid, Safelink Wireless and many more. Plan to drop by their booths to get the latest information.

Also, check out our free healthy refreshments. The whole family will find something they like.

For more information contact Colleen at (575) 556-9681 Extension 115.

Media inquiries should contact [email protected] or call Pamela at (575) 556-9681 Extension 112.

See you at the fair!! 

Remember our post from June 1 about disposing of your medicines properly?

The U.S. Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration is sponsoring “Prescription Take Back Day” on September 26, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

There are eight locations around Las Cruces that are participating in the program. Click on the flyer below to find a location that works for you.

Rx Take Back Flyer

Hey, did you see the front page article in today’s Las Cruces Sun-News about us? That’s our executive director, Pamela Angell, hard at work in the picture.

Click here to check out the article!

We also just posted two more position openings – one for a behavior health clinical supervisor and one for a pharmacist. Check out our Careers page for the job descriptions.

Committed to making a difference? Self-motivated? Hardworking? We want someone like you to join our team!

This is an exciting time to join St. Luke’s dedicated staff and volunteers. Along with funding to renovate our clinic, mentioned in the June 20th blog, we were recently awarded two federal grants. Both grants allow us to hire several new staff members.

Our new grants along with the renovation are “game changers” for homeless and indigent health care in our community. After years of depending on dedicated and committed volunteers and a very small staff, we are now able to devote funds to hiring people to help with the workload.

We will be hiring in stages. This is the first stage and we are hiring a Physician/Medical Director, a Finance Director, a Certified Nurse Practitioner, and an Administrative Assistant. It is easy to apply; just download the job application and position description; complete the application and email or mail as instructed on the application form.

The positions are open until filled.

 So check out our Careers page on this website!  

Do you know why mental health is a public health issue? Did you know that New Mexico’s suicide rate is 59 percent higher than the United States?

Check out this fact sheet from the New Mexico Department of Health! It will make you think!

Mental Health Fact Sheet 2015

Wednesday was an exciting day for us! Governor Susana Martinez signed the state’s Capital Outlay bill at St. Luke’s, the first ever such event for the clinic. The bill authorized $505,000 to St. Luke’s for renovating our 7,000 sq. ft. annex. (It also awarded $295 million for other projects throughout the state.) The funding is the final amount we need to begin renovations on the annex.

We have been working toward this goal since 2012 and have raised $1.1 million dollars. The renovation gives us more than three times the space we have operated in for the past 25 years, which we outgrew long ago. Besides the accumulation of capital outlay funds every year, the City of Las Cruces has also chipped in $130,000 from their CDBG program.

It takes a village to support such a significant undertaking like ours. We are truly grateful to everyone who believes in and supports our mission – to improve the health and well-being of homeless and indigent individuals and family members in Doña Ana County.

We want to give a special shout out, though, to those supporters whose help we needed to get here. In addition to the governor, thanks to state legislators – Senators Mary Kay Papen, Joseph Cervantes, William Soules and former Senator Mary Jane Garcia; Representatives Bill McCamley, Jeff Steinborn, Doreen Gallegos, Terry McMillan, John Zimmerman, Andy Nuñez, Bealquin Bill Gomez, Mary Helen Garcia, Antonio Lujan, and the late Philip Archuleta.

The City of Las Cruces council, mayor, and staff are invaluable supporters. Their funds are modernizing the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system in the annex, greatly needed when hot summer days reach into the 100s.

Thanks to Ted Shelton and ASA Architects our architectural plan and design is ready to go!

Please keep checking our blog. We will have periodic updates, as the dust clears, about our rebuilding efforts with details of new medical rooms and services!

Help make our annual Sun Safety Event a success!

We need sunscreen, hats with brims, bandanas, water bottles, sunglasses and lip balm!

On Thursday, June 25, in collaboration with the University of New Mexico’s medical students program, we are sponsoring a Sun Safety Event from 9:30 – 11:30 a.m. We are accepting donations up to Tuesday, June 23.

The homeless and people with extremely low-incomes are coming to learn about the importance of sun safety. Heatstroke, dehydration, and heat exhaustion are serious problems for the people we serve. They often have nowhere to go to get out of the sun or have the ability to cool off their homes to a livable degree.

Be assured, we will give away any of the above items that you donate and they will be very much appreciated. Your donation is tax-deductible as St. Luke’s is a 5o1(C)3 non-profit corporation.

Please drop off your donations – Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. at the clinic (the building to the right of El Caldito Soup Kitchen).

We are located on the Community of Hope campus at 999 W. Amador Ave.

Need more information? Give us a call at (575) 527-5482.

It is easier than you think!

Live in Las Cruces NM and ever wonder what to do with those expired medications you no longer want? Waiting for the Drug Enforcement Agency’s (DEA) next National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day?

Well, DEA held its last drug take-back day in September 2014 and has since ended the program. In calls to the agency, officials told us to use the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) household disposal guidelines for drug disposal. The guidelines list the steps for disposing of your medications, easily and quickly. Proper disposal requires you to mix your medications with something that makes them uneatable, like coffee grounds or cat litter. Then, adding water to this mixture will dilute and neutralize their potency. Put the mixture in a container with a lid such as a margarine tub or a plastic bag with a seal. You can then toss in the household trash.

You can also purchase medication disposal bags at a local pharmacy or online. The Walgreen’s in Las Cruces sells Medsaway Medication Disposal System™ bags for $3.99. These bags are useful for all types of drugs, even controlled substances. They are available online as well.

The National Community Pharmacists Association hosts a Facebook page for DisposeMyMeds.org. This page is an online resource to help patients find medication disposal programs at local independent community pharmacies. We called one of their local pharmacies, which recommended the Medsaway™ bags. They told us, however, they did not have a drug take-back program. This may mean that not all the pharmacies in their program take back drugs. Check out the Facebook page, though, it is a resource that will keep you informed.

St. Luke’s recommends you follow EPA guidelines and do not flush your medications down the toilet! They can end up in our drinking water sources. Check out the second page in the guidelines for an explanation as to how that can happen.

Primary Focus of the Provider

• Substance Abuse Treatment Services
• Mental Health Treatment Services
• Mix of Mental Health and Substance Abuse
• General health services

---

Type of Care

• Mental health treatment
• Substance abuse treatment
• Detoxification
• Methadone maintenance
• Methadone maintenance for predetermined time
• Methadone detoxification
• Buprenorphine maintenance
• Buprenorphine maintenance for predetermined time
• Buprenorphine detoxification
• Relapse prevention from naltrxone
• Buprenorphine used in treatment
• Naltrexone (oral)
• Vivitrol (injectable Naltrexone)
• Methadone
• Transitional housing or halfway house
• Do not treat opiod addiction
• Use methadone/buprenorphoine for pain management or emergency dosing
• Do not use medication for opioid addiction
• Accepts clients on opioid medication
• Prescribes/administer buprenorphine and/or naltrexone
• All Clients in Opioid Treatment Program
• SAMHSA-certified Opioid Treatment Program

---

Facility Type

• Psychiatric hospital or psychiatric unit of a general hospital
• Residential treatment center (RTC) for children
• Residential treatment center (RTC) for adults
• Other residential treatment facility
• Partial hospitalization/day treatment
• Outpatient mental health facility
• Community mental health center
• Multi-setting mental health facility (e.g., residential plus outpatient)

---

Treatment Approaches

• Individual psychotherapy
• Couples/family therapy
• Group therapy
• Cognitive/behavioral therapy
• Dialectical behavioral therapy
• Behavior modification
• Integrated dual disorders treatment
• Trauma therapy
• Activity therapy
• Electroconvulsive therapy
• Psychotropic medication
• Telemedicine therapy
• Substance abuse counseling approach
• Trauma-related counseling
• Rational emotive behavioral therapy

---

Facility Smoking Policy

• Smoking not permitted
• Smoking permitted in designated area
• Smoking permitted without restriction

---

Service Setting (e.g., Outpatient, Residential, etc.)

• Hospital inpatient
• Residential
• Partial hospitalization/day treatment
• Outpatient
• Short-term residential
• Long-term residential
• Residential detoxification
• Outpatient detoxification
• Outpatient methadone/buprenorphine or vivitrol
• Outpatient day treatment or partial hospitalization
• Intensive outpatient treatment
• Regular outpatient treatment
• Hospital inpatient detoxification
• Hospital inpatient treatment
• Computerized treatment
• General Hospital(including VA hospital)
• Psychiatric hospital

---

Facility Operation (e.g. Private, Public)

• Private organization
• U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
• State mental health authority
• Other state government agency
• Regional/district or county, local or municipal government
• Tribal government
• Indian Health Service
• State Government
• Local, county, or community government
• Department of Defense
• State substance abuse agency
• State mental health department
• State department of health
• Hospital licensing authority
• The Joint Commission
• Commission on Accreditation and Rehabilitation
• National Committee for Quality Assurance
• Council on Accreditation
• Healthcare Facilitiues Accreditation Program
• Other national oraganization

---

Payment/Insurance Accepted

• No payment accepted
• Cash or self-payment
• Medicaid
• Medicare
• State financed health insurance plan other than Medicaid
• Private health insurance
• Military insurance (e.g., TRICARE)
• IHS/Tribal/Urban (ITU) funds
• Access to recovery (ATR) voucher
• State mental health agency (or equivalent) funds
• State welfare or child and family services funds
• State corrections or juvenile justice funds
• State education funds
• Other State funds
• County or local government funds
• Community Service Block Grants
• Community Mental Health Block Grants
• U.S Department of VA funds
• Federal, or any government funding for substance abuse programs

---

Emergency Mental Health Services

• Crisis intervention team
• Psychiatric emergency walk-in services

---

Payment Assistance Available

• Sliding fee scale (fee is based on income and other factors)
• Payment assistance (check with facility for details)

---

Language Services

• Services for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Spanish
• Native American Indian or Alaska Native languages
• Other languages(excluding Spanish)

---

Special Programs/Groups Offered

• Persons with co-occurring mental and substance abuse disorders
• Lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) clients
• Veterans
• Active duty military
• Military families
• Clients referred from the court/judicial system
• Seniors or older adults
• Adolescents
• Pregnant/postpartum women
• Adult women
• Adult men
• Persons with HIV or AIDS
• Persons who have experienced trauma
• Persons who have experienced sexual abuse
• Persons who have experienced intimate partner violence, domestic violence
• Children with serious emotional disturbance (SED)
• Persons with serious mental illness (SMI)
• Persons with Alzheimer's or dementia
• Persons with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Persons with traumatic brain injury (TBI)
• Transitional age young adults
• Persons with eating disorders

---

Ancillary Services

• Assertive community treatment
• Intensive case management
• Case management
• Chronic disease/illness management
• Consumer-run (peer-support) services
• Court-ordered outpatient treatment
• Diet and exercise counseling
• Education services
• Family psychoeducation
• Housing services
• Illness management and recovery
• Integrated primary care service
• Legal advocacy
• Nicotine replacement therapy
• Non-nicotine smoking/tobacco cessation medications
• Psychosocial rehabilitation services
• Screening for tobacco use
• Suicide prevention services
• Supported employment
• Supported housing
• Therapeutic foster care
• Smoking/tobacco cessation counselling
• Vocational rehabilitation services
• Alcohol Detoxification
• Benzodiazepines Detoxification
• Cocaine Detoxification
• Methamphetamines Detoxification
• Opiods Detoxification
• Treatment for gambling disorder
• Treatment for internet use disorder
• Individual counseling offered
• Group counseling offered
• Family counseling offered
• Marital/couples counseling offered
• 12-step faciltitation approach
• Brief intervention approach
• Contingency management/motivational incentive
• Motivational interviewing
• Anger management
• Martix Model
• Community reinforcement plus vouchers
• Relapse prevention
• Residential beds for clients children

---

Age Groups Accepted

• Children/adolescents
• Young adults
• Adults
• Seniors (65 or older)

---

Gender Accepted

• Female
• Male

---

Exclusive Services

• Methadone and buprenorphine clients only
• Methadone clients only
• DUI/DWI clients
• Serve only DWI clients

---