ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – New Mexico’s largest county jail has faced issues with overcrowding, understaffing, and even inmate deaths during detox over the years. Still, law enforcement officials in Albuquerque look to the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) as an important place that can help “break the cycle,” as the first opportunity to connect people to mental health resources and drug treatment.

So will a new healthcare provider at MDC improve some of the facility’s historical problems? And could it ultimately help impact crime in the metro area over time? Those are the questions some are asking after the University of New Mexico Hospital (UNMH) took over as the healthcare provider for MDC this summer.

There have already been some major changes to medical care at MDC as a result of the shift. This week on the New Mexico News Podcast, Chris McKee and Gabrielle Burkhart host UNMH Executive Director of Governmental Affairs, Rodney McNease, for a conversation about those changes. McNease explains staffing shifts and the impact he believes they’re making on a major population of the justice system.

For more information about the inmate population at MDC, follow this link to view a data dashboard on the county’s website.

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Download new episodes of the New Mexico News Podcast every Tuesday, starting around 5:30 a.m., Mountain time. Episodes are available on most podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, and Podbean among others.

Having trouble finding the show? Try searching your favorite podcast player with the term “KRQE” or “New Mexico News Podcast” (without the quotes). You can also use the links above to find the podcast on each respective service or listen to the audio player at the top of this post.

If you have a question, comment, or suggestion as to who should be interviewed on the podcast, let us know! Email the hosts at chris.mckee@krqe.com or gabrielle.burkhart@krqe.com.