1995: Hidalgo Medical Services established
Hidalgo Medical Services (HMS), the organization that founded the Southwest Center for Health Innovation (CHI), opened its doors in 1995 as a joint project between the Office of Community Health at University of New Mexico and the people of Hidalgo County; at the time the last county in New Mexico with no access to basic health care services.
1995 – today: HMS grows and gets innovative
Since 1995, HMS has grown into an organization that serves upwards of 70% of the people of New Mexico’s 2 southwestern-most counties – one of the state’s most isolated, frontier, and traditionally underrepresented majority minority populations. This success required not only taking advantage of existing public policy, but expanding, encouraging, developing and adapting programs and policies to create the environment necessary for services to thrive and people to be served.
2007: The seeds are sown for CHI
By 2007, HMS was growing the CHI concept by adding the management of the National Center for Frontier Communities and the National REACH (Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health) Coalition, as well as advanced work with UNM, the Universities of Arizona and Texas and the Northwest Regional Primary Care Association. Through this work, CHI developed a local, regional and national approach for creating innovative strategies to improve health in a broad sense.
2011: CHI becomes a separate division of HMS
When Hidalgo Medical Services established CHI, the concept of having a separate and equal division for policy, research and development was very unusual in the Community Health Center world.
2015: SWCHI becomes its own nonprofit organization
By 2015, the need for Southwest Center for Health Innovation (SWCHI) to focus fully on innovative approaches to policy & advocacy in rural community health drove the need for change. SWCHI spun off from HMS and became a separate nonprofit organization, although still maintaining a close affiliation with HMS.
2016: Endorsed as an Area Health Education Center
SWCHI’s Forward NM program is endorsed as a Area Health Education Center (AHEC) to serve the southwest corner of New Mexico including Catron, Grant, Hidalgo and Luna Counties. This gives more validity to our efforts to support health care workforce development in the state!
2017: Adopts the Unified Prevention Coalition of Doña Ana County
SWCHI adopts the Unified Prevention Coalition of Doña Ana County, New Mexico. The UP! Coalition’s mission is to build community collaboration around efforts to reduce and/or prevent youth drug and alcohol use and abuse, address factors that increase risks of usage and promote factors that increase resiliency. This strengthened SWCHI’s partnership with New Mexico Office of Substance Abuse Prevention to keep vital prevention coalitions around the state functioning.
2017: Adopts Youth Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition
SWCHI adopts the Youth Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition of Grant County New Mexico. The YSAPC works tirelessly to curb youth access to alcohol, opioids and tobacco through initiating social projects and guiding public and school policy for greatest impact. Partnering with the New Mexico Office of Substance Abuse Prevention, CHI continued to ensure vital prevention coalitions continued their efforts into the future.
2018: New Mexico’s Public Health Institute
A banner day as SWCHI is designed New Mexico’s Public Health Institute by the National Network of Public Health Institutes! SWCHI is one of the few rurally located public health institutes in the nation giving us a perspective that is invaluable in a rural state like New Mexico!
2018: Adopts Coalition Against Teens using Substances
The Coalition Against Teens using Substances (CATS) of Luna County joins the SWCHI Team. CATS is a sub-committee of the Luna County Health Council dedicated to reducing alcohol use among underage youth and prescription drug misuse in Luna County, New Mexico. SWCHI also creates a Prevent Department within the organization to better administer our expanding prevention efforts around the state!
2018: Southern New Mexico Health Area Education Center joins SWCHI
Southern Area Health Education Center (SoAHEC) joins SWCHI, growing our health care workforce development programs to serve the entire southern half of New Mexico! SoAHEC provides health education, health career recruitment and support for health-related continuing education for 13 counties: Chaves, Cibola, Doña Ana, De Baca, Eddy, Lea, Lincoln, Otero, Roosevelt, Sierra, Socorro, Torrance, and Valencia counties.
2019: Adopts Cibola Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition
SWCHI adds to its ever-growing prevention efforts with the adoption of the Cibola Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition. The coalition educated and prevents substance abuse through awareness and cooperation in Cibola County, New Mexico. This makes the fourth Office of New Mexico Office of Substance Abuse Prevention program to join the SWCHI Team.
2020: Transformation to the Center for Health Innovation
Having expanded to serve the entire state of New Mexico, it was time to update our organization’s name to reflect that fact. Welcome the new and improved The Center for Health Innovations!