This article first appeared in the Hobbs News-Sun.
As we kick off a season of New Year’s Resolutions focused on healthy habits, the JF Maddox Foundation is also working toward supporting a healthier Lea County. We know that a healthier community means a safer and more prosperous community and while this work is not easy, it is especially rewarding when access to health care often means life or death.
For many, health issues are multifaceted and are impacted by a variety of factors. To address a healthy community holistically, the JF Maddox Foundation works with the Lea County Health Council to meet monthly and discuss how we can further support our community in being its best self. We talk about housing insecurity, chronic disease management, substance misuse and behavioral health, STDs/STIs, and adolescent health issues, and how our many community partners can work together to improve outcomes.
In addition to coordinating with our local partners, over the last year, we have been working with the American College of Cardiology to improve cardiovascular care in Lea County through the Rural Cardiovascular Health Initiative. This program is designed to increase community-wide awareness, engagement and education around heart disease and related risk factors. Just last week ACC hosted a series of workshops at the New Mexico Junior College training community health workers to provide cardiac specific patient education and increasing community-wide awareness of cardiovascular risk factors. ACC has officially been approved as an endorsed sponsor for a continuing education unit by the New Mexico Office of Community Health Workers. This program will continue into 2025 hosting more workshops in our community as well as working with Nor-Lea Hospital District and Covenant Health Hospital to improve training for rural care providers.
Additionally, the Foundation has been working to create a pipeline of rural medical providers in Lea County through a $1.5 million grant to the Southwest Foundation for Osteopathic Education and Research and Burell College of Osteopathic Medicine to support a Graduate Medical Education (GME) residency program at Nor-Lea Hospital District and Covenant Health Hobbs Hospital. Since our grant announcement, the new program received its Initial Accreditation by the Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical Education. This is an incredible accomplishment and means they will be able to begin recruiting residency candidates. By creating opportunities for qualified medical professionals in Lea County, we are transforming the quality of life for many of our citizens. New residents are expected to begin their program in Lea County in July of 2025.
Core to the Foundation’s vision is the idea that with opportunity for all, Lea County is a place we are proud to call home, and I am proud of the work we have done in the last year to lay the groundwork for a healthier future for Lea County. Whether it’s through a new medical residency program, improving education or coordinating with local partners together, we are making a difference for years to come.
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Mayra Lovas is the Vice President of Grants at the JF Maddox Foundation, a family foundation in Lea County, New Mexico. Alongside its partners, the foundation invests in education, social services, and community development for a greater quality of life for Lea County residents.
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