US Senator Ben Ray Lujan took a tour Wednesday of the recently opened Presbyterian Medical Services’ new facility, the Santa Fe Family Health Center.
The facility which opened in August will eventually be housing primary care, behavioral health, pediatric care and dental health for southside residents in need.
Primary and behavioral healthcare services are already being provided at the location by combining the PMS Santa Fe Community Guidance operation with Santa Fe Family Wellness.
Lujan says the importance of such a facility can’t be underemphasized as the needs for services grow and the shortages of proper personnel continue to plague such health care facilities in New Mexico and across the country.
The Senator says one positive aspect is more officials are recognizing the need for better mental health facilities and treatment across the country.
“When I was invited to be part of a working group with fellow Senators around primary care I was insistent that mental and behavioral care be treated as primary care as well,” he said. “There was a conversation that there were limited resources and we’re trying to keep this as narrow as possible to get more (legislative) support for primary care which is desperately needed, but I shared with them, this is primary care. There is a shortage today and it needs to be included. In the end there was a willingness to embrace and expand it as well.”
Lujan also discussed work in the Senate designed to help lower the costs of prescription drugs through provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act.
He also met with healthcare professionals in Albuquerque to talk about the state’s healthcare workforce, the problems of getting services to people in need in rural areas and the lack of enough certified personnel.