NC addiction treatment programs partner to reduce maternal deaths from substance use

Project CARA (Care that Advocates Respect/Resilience/Recovery for All) supports pregnant and parenting people with substance use disorders, providing healthcare, addiction resources and obstetrics care in one spot. The program's hub-and-spokes model makes care more accessible, especially for those in remote areas. Data from the Project also indicates that participants of the program are more likely to attend prenatal and postpartum appointments than those outside of the program.

PCC Community Wellness helps people who are pregnant and struggling with addiction access prenatal care and addiction treatment and feel more supported on their recovery journey. Peer recovery doulas help get clients to prenatal appointments, access addiction treatment and navigate the complicated health care and legal systems. They also work to educate hospital staff on ways to reduce stigma for those struggling with addiction.

Black parents are at greater risk of experiencing serious complications during pregnancy and childbirth, which is why preserving Black birth care, like doulas, is so important to preventing unnecessary deaths and medical interventions. The doula community is growing and there’s currently a push among local doulas and providers to grow the network of doulas of color to increase the accessibility of relevant and representative birth care.

Several states are changing their drug paraphernalia laws, making it legal to possess fentanyl test strips which allow those who use drugs to test them for fentanyl. Fentanyl test strips are a means of harm reduction that allows the person to make informed decisions about their drug use in an effort to reduce fatal drug overdoses.

Several groups in the Appalachian region are turning toward harm-reduction strategies to help those struggling with drug abuse. Research shows that those who participate in syringe exchange programs are five times more likely to enter treatment than those who didn’t participate. Groups like Holler Harm Reduction and Choice Health Network host scheduled drop-ins where they deliver supplies, provide naloxone training and education, and administer disease testing wound care to those in need.

The Substance Use Network (SUN) Project brings together partners in medicine, social services, criminal justice, and recovery services, to provide care for mothers with substance use disorder and their babies. The project is guided by a patient-centered approach that uses pregnancy as an opportunity to encourage someone into treatment and since its launch, more than 40 patients have been treated

The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative provides a 10-step approach to hospital-based breastfeeding support in an effort to increase breastfeeding rates and reduce the racial disparities Black women often face during breastfeeding initiation. Breastfeeding has been shown to have a significant impact on a baby and mother’s health outcomes and the breastfeeding medicine clinic is available to anyone who is interested, including Medicaid patients who wouldn’t be able to afford the services otherwise.

Sober spaces are free community hubs built around fitness, music, meals, and other activities, are emerging as a complement to traditional addiction treatment. Organizations like the Phoenix and the Recovery Café Network offer environments where people in recovery can rebuild social connections and daily routines without the focus being on addiction itself. The Phoenix reports 83% of new members remain sober after three months, and enrollment has grown with new member enrollments rising from roughly 20,000 to over 433,000 between 2020 and 2025.

Chesterfield County, Virginia implemented a multi-faceted response to the opioid crisis, including a jail-based recovery program, Helping Addicts Recover Progressively (HARP), that brings people in recovery to the local jail to talk about addiction and treatment resources. Combined with other efforts, overdose deaths have dropped by half in a single year, and around 4,000 people have participated in HARP.

Health engagement hubs like Washington state’s Buprenorphine Pathways connect people with prescriptions for methadone and buprenorphine to help treat addiction. In addition to medication and a syringe-exchange program, the hub also connects patients to social services, taking a more holistic approach to addiction treatment.