NEW MEXICO CRISIS RESPONSE NETWORK
(NMCRN)

GOALS OF THE NMCRN

1. Develop commitment, leadership, and resources within the Department of Health to establish a centralized point for resource identification and mobilization, public information, and technical support for a comprehensive crisis response to violence.

2. Coordinate and enhance comprehensive crisis response services at the local level, using a case management approach, to support the physical, emotional, legal, and spiritual needs of victims, their families, caregivers, and the broader community.

3. Assist local communities with implementing effective violence and injury prevention initiatives.

BACKGROUND OF THE NMCRN

The New Mexico Department of Health (DOH) considers violence a major public health problem in New Mexico. Violent incidents or crises may be interpersonal as in homicide, suicide, or domestic violence. Crises may be human caused, as in vehicle crashes. And lastly, crises may arise from natural disasters such as tornadoes, explosions or fires.

In keeping with the Department’s efforts to respond in a proactive and integrated manner to violence and other crises in our communities, schools or workplaces, the Department of Health is developing a coordinated, multi-level response system to major violent and critical episodes.

If one considers violence and injury as a disease, the approach to addressing it should be comparable to responding to a serious communicable or infectious disease outbreak. Based on the knowledge that people are more receptive to discuss and take action during and immediately after a crisis, supportive and preventive intervention should be rapidly focused at the individual, family, and community levels. NMCRN is based upon this premise.

STATEWIDE PARTNERSHIP

The NMCRN represents a partnership among resources at the community level and a central unit with a statewide focus. NMCRN recognizes that some communities have extensive capacity for response and can manage most of their own incidents through victim assistance coordinators, school-based programs or mental health centers.

Some areas may lack this capacity and will need support. NMCRN provides the statewide network of support resources that can be mobilized for both response and prevention.

NMCRN MODEL

Many concepts that are at the foundation of NMCRN are adopted from Critical Incident Stress Management, a form of "psychological intervention" used with emergency personnel, military, and community members who witness or experience violence. To accelerate the normal recovery, a structured group or one-on-one discussion is conducted, fairly quickly after the traumatic event.

The intervention has three objectives:

• mitigate the impact of the traumatic event;

• accelerate normal healing;

• identify those who might need additional assistance.

  It is important to realize that the intervention is NOT psychotherapy or a substitution for mental health or counseling. Rather, NMCRN is aimed at intervening at the moment where support services are most valuable and exploring the potential for prevention initiatives.

8 WAYS TO MANAGE STRESS

1. Alternate strenuous physical exercise with relaxation to alleviate some of the physical reactions to stress.

2. Structure your time; keep busy. Do things that make you feel good. Talk to people; they do care! Talk can be the most healing medicine.

3. Remind yourself that you are normal and experiencing normal reactions to a stressful incident. Do not label yourself "crazy."

4. Keep your life as normal as possible. Do not make any major life changes.

5. Avoid alcohol and drug use.

6. Help your co-workers by sharing your feelings and seeing how they are doing.

7. Give yourself permission to feel rotten; don’t try to hide your feelings.

8. Watch your diet. Avoid sugar and caffeine. Don’t skip meals.

NMCRN
HOW TO CONTACT:

To request an intervention, call the 24-hour emergency number 505-827-9384. A NMCRN dispatcher will be paged and will respond to assess the type of intervention needed.

For general information on the NMCRN or to schedule educational presentations, contact the Injury Prevention and EMS Bureau (IPEMSB) at 505-476-7000, Monday through Friday, during regular office hours. on the NMCRN or to schedule educational presentations, contact the Injury Prevention and EMS Bureau (IPEMSB) at 505-476-7000, Monday through Friday, during regular office hours.

Mailing Address:

IPEMSB
P. O. Box 26110
Santa Fe, NM 87502-6110

Physical Location:

IPEMSB
2025 S. Pacheco, Suite A-203
Santa Fe, NM 87505

Mission Statement

The mission of the New Mexico Crisis Response Network is to ensure that all our citizens and communities have access to timely, comprehensive support services in response to crisis, and to reduce the incidence of violence and traumatic injuries in New Mexico.