Abstract
Pregnant women with a substance use disorder have many barriers to treatment, including stigma, fear of disclosing use, the potential for having their children taken away, gender and race disparities, mental health, public policy, and the lengthy process to get into treatment. Ways to overcome these barriers, including gender-specific treatment, decreasing stigma associated with substance use disorders, increasing trauma informed care, providers assessing their own biases, and changing public policy are discussed. In addition, the importance of learning how to overcome barriers to protect the health of mothers, babies, their families, and communities, along with several interventions including screening and early engagement, trauma-informed care, relationship focused care, medication assisted treatment, residential (inpatient) treatment, and outpatient mental health services. The current standard of care for pregnant women who are addicted to drugs includes medication assisted treatment, which is extremely underutilized, which is reviewed, as well as added mental health support, which is imperative given studies that show both mental health and substance use are common in pregnancy.
Date of Award
Fall 12-21-2023
Document Type
Capstone Paper
Degree Name
Masters of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
Department
Counselor Education - Graduate Studies
First Advisor
Anquinetta Calhoun
Location
Winona, MN
Recommended Citation
Novinska, Sarah, "Barriers, Motivation, and Interventions for Women with Substance Use Disorders During Pregnancy" (2023). Counselor Education Capstones. 187.
https://openriver.winona.edu/counseloreducationcapstones/187
