Babies breastfed by mothers in the Healthy MOMS program at the Wright Center had shorter stays in the NICU.

Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash

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Research to heal

NORTHEAST PA — Now there’s some data: breastfeeding and supportive care matter, especially for mothers with substance use disorders and their babies.

The Wright Center for Community Health’s opioid use disorder center and its Healthy Maternal Opiate Medical Support program (Healthy MOMS) were the focus of a recent webinar series in June.

The series was a production of the Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP); it addresses barriers to treatment for substance use disorder. One session, “Storytelling with Data,” focused on the challenges and success of breastfeeding and neonatal abstinence syndrome rates in the Healthy MOMS program.

Healthy MOMS launched in 2017, and has served more than 300 mothers and celebrated more than 184 infant births over eight northeast PA counties, including rural Wayne and Susquehanna. The program currently serves 142 participants. Sixty-two percent of the Healthy MOMS participants with infants are breastfeeding, which is higher than the national average of 58 percent six months after birth.

“Our team realizes that healthy babies begin with healthy moms and that being healthy means attending to all of your health, financial, legal and personal needs,” Joseph Boino, program manager of the Wright Center’s opioid use disorder center, said. “Even in ideal circumstances, raising a child takes a village. The complex struggles surrounding opioid and substance use addiction can make pregnancy even more challenging.”

Neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) is a group of conditions caused when a baby withdraws from opioids and other drugs introduced in the womb. Most babies with NAS receive treatment in the hospital after birth. NAS can lead to long-term health and developmental problems, including hearing and vision problems and problems with learning and behavior.

“Many of the mothers and providers we work with are worried about breastfeeding while on medication-assisted treatment (MAT),” said Boino, explaining that MAT uses FDA-approved medicine and is supplemented by behavioral treatment and social support. “We use our own data to show them that it leads to better health outcomes.”

Babies with NAS, breastfed by mothers in the Healthy MOMS program, stay in the neonatal intensive care unit for an average of 12.69 days. For mothers who do not breastfeed, the NAS babies stay an average of 17.03 days.

Through the Healthy MOMS program, mothers have access to behavioral health care and counseling, certified recovery specialists and peer support groups. Other services such as assistance with transportation to and from appointments, and sometimes temporary housing, are offered through the program.

For more information about the Wright Center for Community Health’s Healthy MOMS program, visit healthymoms.org, text healthymoms to 555888 or call 570/955-7821.

Contributed by the Wright Center for Community Health.