Opioid Use by Pregnant and Parenting Women: Let’s Not Repeat the Mistakes of 25 Years Ago

read full article @ https://www.milbank.org/quarterly/articles/opioid-use-by-pregnant-and-parenting-women-lets-not-repeat-the-mistakes-of-25-years-ago/?utm_source=Milbank+Email+List&utm_campaign=c67bf95dbf-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_01_09_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_dbce9df54c-c67bf95dbf-74930293

• “As in the case of crack, many women who live with opioid use disorders face other challenges to their wellbeing and social functioning that include poverty, family dislocation, and other mental health and substance use disorders.” 

• “...gripping human stories threaten to lead us astray, feeding narratives of hopelessness and stigma that harm people we need to help.” 

• “A key lesson of the “crack baby” scare was that the most serious challenges were pediatric problems disguised as obstetric ones. Particularly in the absence of alcohol or other substance use, most drug-exposed infants are born basically healthy. Many of their parents need help to care for their babies when they bring them home. Medical, educational, and social service systems failed to focus on these challenges during the crack era, missing many available opportunities to help. The same is surely true today.”

What are the roots of these epidemics?

Why are we blaming the women and their families?

What can our local, state, national systems do to holistically and genuinely address root causes of crisis and addiction?