Photos and article by Mary Alice Murphy

Hidalgo Medical Services, the service provider for the Tu Casa substance abuse treatment center, officially opened the facility on Dec. 7, 2018, with a few speakers and a ribbon cutting.

Dan Otero, HMS chief executive officer, opened the event saying: "This is an important and exciting time in our community." He recognized his board of directors, as well as representatives of Sen. Martin Heinrich and Sen. Tom Udall, state, local county and municipal representatives, and Gila Regional Medical Center trustees, all of whom he described as leaders helping HMS create partnerships.

Rick Lopez, division director of the New Mexico Local Government Division, said his agency provided two grants, one for $150,000 and a Community Development Block Grant for $500,000 to help get the facility constructed.

He said Grant County and Silver City officials worked together to get it done. "It takes dedicated people who get it done." He recognized County Manager Charlene Webb, Town Manager Alex Brown, County Planner Michael "Mischa" Larisch and General Services Director Randy Villa for working through the grants.

"For the CDBG, you have to make sure a certain number of the employees are low to moderate income," Lopez said. "The minimum is 18 for a facility this size. They have 22 here. Silver City is one of my favorite communities. I had two nephews who played tennis at Western New Mexico University. If everyone could mimic Silver City, this state could be very successful. I've been hearing how you take care of so many needs. I love hearing them. With all the hard work and headaches, it's a pleasure to see this."

Otero said the facility is the result of grassroots efforts. "Five years ago, then-Commissioner Ron Hall, Susie Trujillo, Chris DeBolt, Mike Carillo and Jim Helgert joined to get this done."

Trujillo read comments from Hall, after saying: "God and family mean a lot to him. He's not here because he's babysitting for his daughter who is attending a big conference. This is what he wrote: 'In the fall of 2013, Susie and I got together to discuss our concerns on drug abuse and the impacts it was having on families and communities. We decided a small committee would be mighty. We spent 12 months doing feasibility studies and research. We interviewed many providers, studied profiles, including ones from the Department of Health; the Grant County Community Health Council profile, which was a great report; and we got statistics and data from the crisis line, the Detention Center, the courts and law enforcement. The first four of us who started this weren't providers. I didn't know anything about continuum of care, so we contracted with someone. For Phase 1, we knew we definitely needed a single place for services to coordinate and continue services, including behavioral health and primary care."

Trujillo said for Phase 2, Hall loved to talk about coordinated, comprehensive care. "We did a sustainability study. We thank Silver City and Grant County for being incredible partners. For Phase 3, the county passed a gross receipts tax increment for building the facility. Silver City leased this land on 32nd Street. Phase 4 was a request for proposal for a provider of services. We developed other revenue sources for furnishing and equipping the facility, including $180,000 in state capital outlay. The Southwest New Mexico Council of Governments helped us get the $500,000 from CDBG. Phase 5 was choosing HMS as the provider. HMS has been phenomenal. They listened to us. They worked hard on the referral process. We finalized the site, and Oct. 15, 2017 was the groundbreaking. Licensing was an ordeal. We want to thank Charlene. She has been unbelievable, saying: 'How can I help?'"

Trujillo also thanked the architect Kevin Robinson, state representatives Rebecca Dow and Rodolpho "Rudy" Martinez and Sen. Howie Morales, the county and Silver City. "I have to also thank Dr. Neal Bowen of HMS, the COG, New Mexico State Land Office and everyone who took the assessment survey, and I can't forget the taxpaying citizens of Grant County. This facility must be utilized by those who need the services. For five years, this has been my dream," she continued as she teared up.

Carillo, Detention Center administrator, said: "We all shared ideas. We had a dream and we never gave up on it. I thank the judges who have been part of this as a wonderful resource. The reason we put it together was that we had a lot of resources, but they were all siloed. We talked about how we could bring them together. We talked about the people who would create this facility and those we would help. This is Tu Casa."

"This is truly about each individual patient/client," Otero said. "It goes back to what we have to do. When a clinician sits across from a patient and finds care for that patient, that's why we're here. The clinician has to stay strong and put the patient at the center of that moment." He also recognized Chief Nursing Officer Peggy White and Rennie Mariscal of Gila Regional Medical Center.

"This is enormous and so challenging in so many ways," Dr. Bowen, HMS chief mental health officer, said. "It is rewarding in more ways. The proposal we put out for the RFP had a business plan that was so complex. (Dr. Darrick) Nelson (HMS chief medical officer) said 'we can do it.'"

Bowen said part of the motivation was to help families and individuals get the care needed. "There is not a single way to get out of substance abuse. In New Mexico, if you combine suicide, mental health issues and substance abuse, they are at the top of where you don't want to be. We went into this with our eyes wide open. The board of directors give us their support, wisdom and vision. The facility is gorgeous. I am moved by the determination of the staff to provide evidence-based science and help to heal and improve behavioral health in the state. We will provide integrated care and trauma-informed care. The state has provided opportunities to make this clinic sustainable. We will coordinate care across the system with CareLinks. We opened this facility on Oct. 15, 2018. Susie et al developed a fabulous plan. We will be a crisis triage center 24/7, once we are licensed, hopefully by the end of the month. This will be a valuable resource to friends and neighbors of those who need these services."

Otero said Bowen is a valuable asset to the community and the facility, as is Nelson, who is not only HMS chief medical director but also residency supervisor.

The HMS tagline is "Your total health is our total commitment."

"When we have a patient in the throes of being knocked down, we will help that person stand up and we will walk with them," Otero continued. "We will take care of all their needs, including housing, food. We have a total commitment to the total health of patients."

He thanked everyone for coming. "We are family. We want to keep the momentum to make sure everyone gets the services they need."

County and municipal representatives and HMS board members went outside, as the rain let up for a bit, for the official ribbon cutting.

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