Eastern New Mexico Medical Center Keeps Community Healthy
Celebrating more than a century of service, ENMMC has expanded into a regional health care hub.
Sponsored by: Eastern New Mexico Medical Center
For Eastern New Mexico Medical Center (ENMMC), delivering great care is personal. After all, when you’ve been part of the community for more than a century, your patients are also friends and neighbors.
Eastern New Mexico Medical Center CEO Warren Yehl says the 162-bed hospital in Roswell hits the sweet spot in terms of size, medical specialties and community outreach.
“We have the benefits of a small town while nestled in a larger community in New Mexico. This allows us to provide comprehensive medical services to the region beyond what you may find in a community our size,” Yehl explains.
“We want to be that ‘one stop shop’ for the majority of community care needs, while establishing strong collaborative relationships with larger hospitals for higher-level services,” he adds.
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A Regional Health Care Hub
ENMMC traces its roots back to the 1906 founding of St. Mary’s Hospital, its predecessor organization. The medical center opened at the current campus on April 11, 1955, with a mission to serve Roswell and Chaves County. In the nearly 70 years since, the campus has transformed into a true regional health care hub.
“We’re the most comprehensive hospital in southeast New Mexico,” Yehl says. “We service about a quarter million people, but we’re very geographically dispersed.”
In addition to the Joint Commission accredited hospital and lab, the ENMMC umbrella includes three medical office buildings, 16 affiliated provider clinics and 25 affiliated providers offering a broad range of services from family care, women’s health, general surgery, orthopedics, podiatry, radiation oncology and cardiology to name a few.
When every minute matters, ENMMC’s certified Emergency Room has a distinction as a certified Level III Trauma Center, Primary Stroke Center and Chest Pain Center to put lifesaving care within reach of area residents.
“Because our geographic distance to larger hospitals, it is important to give community high-quality care close to home,” Yehl points out.
The medical center is also one of the few facilities in the state with an adult inpatient behavioral care unit, which draws patients from across New Mexico to receive the specialized, evidence-based care required to address mental and emotional health challenges.
Investing in Technology, Education
“We’re investing between $1 to $3 million annually in capital investment to improve, update and maintain the high-quality services we provide at ENMMC,” Yehl says of keeping current with new techniques and technologies.
In the past few years, the hospital has doubled dialysis capacity, upgraded all inpatient beds to modern hospital beds, incorporated new technology in urology services, expanded cardiac services with several new technologies such as 3-D cardiac CT imaging and right and left ventricular assist devices (RVAD/LVAD), and updated several inpatient units to create a warm, welcoming environment.
Additionally, ENMMC invested $600,000 at the end of 2022 for new 4K laparoscopic towers to support minimally invasive surgical procedures and advanced imaging for diagnostics.
“Even though we live in rural New Mexico, we can still bring that modern, state-of-the-art care,” Yehl points out proudly. He adds significant expansion of the obstetrics program in slated for next year.
Another way ENMMC plans for the future is by helping prepare the next generation of health care providers. “We work incredibly closely with Eastern New Mexico University in Roswell,” Yehl says of partnering with the college’s robust health education division.
The hospital also welcomes medical students from Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine in Las Cruces and residents from other educational institutions.
“We try to help as many future health care professionals as we can, and we recruit extensively from all those programs,” Yehl adds.
Keeping Neighbors Healthy
Of course, ENMMC is here to care for the sick – but delivering compassionate, community-focused care means working hard to keep neighbors healthy.
“We’re one of the main sponsors of the Chaves County Health Expo, which happens each August,” Yehl says. The large event at the Roswell Convention Center encourages a healthy lifestyle for all ages and includes health education, meet and greet with health care team members and fun, interactive stations.
After a pause for the pandemic, ENMMC’s Senior Circle has returned. “We go out of our way to provide medical education and outreach through Senior Circle,” Yehl notes. He adds a big part of that effort includes social engagement. Senior Circle currently services 600 members and growing.
Programming is available weekdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Membership, which is free, includes access to a wide range of programming from physician- and provider-led health seminars to entertainment and hands-on activities.
Supporting the Community
ENMMC isn’t just located in the community, it’s truly part of the community.
In addition to supportive outreach, the hospital provides nearly $35 million in charity and uncompensated care to those in need each year.
Thousands of dollars more are earmarked to aid area nonprofits and community events. CASA, Walk for Hope, Senior Olympics, Boys and Girls Club, Red Cross, Roswell Homeless Coalition, Walk to End Alzheimer’s and the Roswell Symphony are just a few of the organizations ENMMC helps support.
While the hospital provides financial sponsorships, the staff also gives back with countless hours of manpower to community organizations. Yehl points to Dr. Richard Pinon’s work with the Boy Scouts as an example of ENMMC putting its mission of caring for the community into motion.
Making a Difference Daily
Whether delivering a new baby, performing emergency surgery, getting a student athlete ready for the season or volunteering in the community, ENMMC and its more than 550 team members are making a difference in Roswell, Chaves County, southeast New Mexico and beyond.
“We’re here taking care of our friends, families and neighbors,” Yehl says. “We get to perform miracles for a living. I don’t know why you would do anything else once you’ve seen the difference you can make.”
