Community Health Profile
FOR

Lincoln County, New Mexico

2006-2007

Executive Summary

The community health improvement process endeavors to improve the health and wellness of Lincoln County residents. This process is an enormous undertaking, which utilizes the expertise and involvement of partners from many diverse entities, all working as a team focused on improving the quality of life in Lincoln County. This team, the Lincoln County Community Health Council, is dedicated to this cause. The county profile and plan identifies health deficits, assets and opportunities. To facilitate the process of compiling a profile and formulating a plan, a full review of previous plans was completed, and subsequently incorporated into the current evaluation process. For this process, each standing committee of the community health council was charged with examining the current health priorities, comparing new data with previously published data for the county, and making a decision as to what the priorities would be. Reviews of the data revealed that since the 2004-2005 update, there were significant changes within the community. The teen pregnancy rate had decreased significantly while the incidence of domestic violence placed Lincoln County as number one in the state of New Mexico for incidence of domestic violence.

As a result of the review process, the priorities for the health council became:

1) Domestic Violence, and 2) Substance Abuse

Lincoln County covers approximately 4,831 square miles and has a population of 21,007 residents (2005 est.) The median household income is $35,800 and persons living below the poverty level are about 15%. The unemployment rate holds at approximately 3.9%. While the economy is quite dependent upon tourism, this brings about low-income wages for service oriented jobs and seasonal weather can greatly affect the area's economy, especially when recent droughts caused a shortage of snow. The population swells by as much as 73% during the summer months when out of state visitors arrive to escape the heat from the plains below.

Lincoln County is faced with a lack of health care providers to match the quickly growing population. There continues to be a significant percentage of children living in poverty, lack of affordable health care, and a geographic area that makes it difficult to access care from neighboring communities. Barriers to care include language/cultural differences, means of transportation, distance from healthcare facilities, number of primary care physicians by area of the county, poverty and lack of insurance. Efforts are underway to obtain a new transportation system within the county that will be affordable to all citizens.

Recruiting for new physicians is also ongoing.

Combating the problem of domestic violence is a challenge; however, collaboration from several workgroups during the past year has made a difference. The diligent efforts of partners such as HEAL (Help End Abuse for Life), COPE (Center of Protective Environment), and LCCC-VAW (Lincoln County Coalition on Violence Against Women), along with the community health council domestic violence subcommittee, has produced a new awareness among residents and a strong motivation to continue efforts to reduce the incidence of domestic violence in this county. The challenges remain; especially in developing an offender treatment program and finding ways to collect and analyze data from law enforcement agencies in order to correctly identify and evaluate specific issues.

In terms of substance use and abuse, Lincoln County has, just as many other counties, had an increase in methamphetamine use. The Health Council subcommittee, in collaboration with other groups such as the JD12 Local Behavioral Health Collaborative, is taking steps toward prevention and reduction of numbers in this area. It is difficult to have an accurate assessment of drug activity in the schools, since school administrators have chosen not to participate in the YRRS surveys. The Health Council is also working toward resolution of this issue.

Utilizing these tools, the county health profile, and the community health improvement plan, the Health Council will be able to monitor and measure progress toward achieving the goals of reducing domestic violence and substance abuse in Lincoln County. These tools will also assist in evaluating other needs and issues identified throughout the process.