Clear Impact logo

Result 1: Improved Health Status for New Mexicans

P003: Alcohol-related death rate per 100,000 population

Current Value

66.0 per 100,000

2016

Definition

Line Bar

Story Behind the Curve

  • Alcohol-related deaths include 54 conditions ranging from alcohol-related motor vehicle traffic crash deaths and alcohol liver disease to alcohol poisoning and some cancers. Combined, alcoholic liver disease and cirrhosis make up more than a third of alcohol-related death in New Mexico. Four people die of alcohol-related causes every day in New Mexico.
  • New Mexico has the highest alcohol-related death rate in the nation and the rate continues to increase.
  • Although excessive alcohol consumption does not differ by race/ethnicity, there are disparities in alcohol-related death. For example, alcohol-related death rates are two times higher for Whites, three times higher for Black/African Americans and Hispanics, and nearly ten times higher for American Indians compared to Asian/Pacific Islanders. This points to the importance of including “upstream” public health factors, such as access to health care, when planning prevention strategies.
  • Many evidence-based strategies can be implemented to reduce alcohol-related harm, such as those recommended by the Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) and the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF).
  • NMDOH depends on partnerships with other state agencies, health care providers, community groups, and community and tribal health councils to expand our reach. These stakeholders are key to turning the curve on alcohol-related mortality.

Partners

  • NMDOH
  • New Mexico Department of Transportation
  • New Mexico Human Services Department
  • New Mexico Children, Youth, and Families Department
  • New Mexico Department of Finance and Administration
  • County and Tribal Health councils
  • Santa Fe Prevention Alliance
  • McKinley County DWI Council
  • Rocky Mountain Youth Corp
  • Hands across Cultures
  • Gallup Share and Care
  • Partners for Community Action
  • Clinical groups
  • Navajo Nation
  • Bernalillo County, Office of Health and Social Services

What Works

  • Regulate alcohol outlet density in key areas.
  • Increase alcohol screening and brief intervention.
  • Increase the price of alcohol.
  • Decrease the hours alcohol is sold.

Strategy

  • Collect, analyze, and interpret public health surveillance data on excessive alcohol and related harms and on policy and environmental strategies to address it. 
  • Disseminate findings on drug use and related harms to all stakeholders and respond to inquiries.
  • Provide scientific support to health department and external partners to help plan and evaluate evidence-based strategies for preventing excessive alcohol use and related harms.
  • Provide technical assistance to public health partners on effective approaches for monitoring and reporting findings on excessive alcohol use and related harms.
  • Implement evidence-based strategies to reduce alcohol-related harm recommended by the Community Preventive Services Task Force and the US Preventive Services Task Force.  Examples include alcohol screening and brief intervention and regulating alcohol outlet density.

FY18 Annual Progress Summary

In FY18, the New Mexico Department of Health Epidemiology and Response Division continued to work collaboratively with internal  programs as well as many of the county-based health councils to lessen the severity of alcohol-related deaths in New Mexico.

Clear Impact Suite is an easy-to-use, web-based software platform that helps your staff collaborate with external stakeholders and community partners by utilizing the combination of data collection, performance reporting, and program planning.

Scorecard Container Measure Action Actual Value Target Value Tag S A m/d/yy m/d/yyyy