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INFOGRAPHIC Prison MAT paper

Buprenorphine-Naloxone as a Medication to Treat Opioid Use Disorder Among Pregnant Women

What The Data Says

• Findings from a systemic review, meta-analysis, and subgroup analysis reinforce previous support indicating buprenorphine-naloxone during pregnancy has similar pregnancy and neonatal outcomes compared to other forms of treatment such as buprenorphine alone or methadone.

• Results from a subgroup analysis reaffirm that buprenorphine-naloxone treatment has a decreased potential for misuse when compared with that of buprenorphine alone, and in some cases is more available than other forms of treatment.

What Does This Mean?

•Pregnant patients with opioid use disorder and their clinical care team can be reassured that taking buprenorphine-naloxone is relatively safe and effective for both parent and child .

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INFOGRAPHIC: Buprenorphine-Naloxone as a Medication to Treat Opioid Use Disorder Among Pregnant Women

Link, Heather Met al. “Buprenorphine-naloxone use in pregnancy: a subgroup analysis of medication to treat opioid use disorder.” American journal of obstetrics & gynecology MFM, vol. 3,5100369. 5 Apr. 2021, doi:10.1016/j.ajogmf.2021.100369 Link, Heather Met al. “Buprenorphine-naloxone use in pregnancy: a systematic review and metaanalysis.” American journal of obstetrics & gynecology MFM vol. 2,3 (2020): 100179. doi:10.1016/j.ajogmf.2020.100179

For more information about this transformational project, please read the full press release

/obgyn/horizons/wp-content/uploads/sites/790/2021/05/COVID-PREGNANCY-NC-1.pdf

Jenna

One such woman was Jenna, a Horizons graduate. After completing treatment, Jenna was incarcerated related to charges pre-dating her time at Horizons. On her first day out of prison, Jenna’s dealer gave her opioid pills as a “welcome home” gift. Jenna took a few pills, entered a courtroom to appear before the judge, and saw a Horizons staff member with another woman.

As Jenna became more intoxicated, she slipped the staff member a note that read: “I need help – call me.” By the time Jenna’s former therapist called later that afternoon, it was too late. Jenna was already dead from an opioid overdose.

Horizons recently received $429,000 from FORE (Foundation for Opioid Response Efforts) for Jenna’s Project: Supporting Women’s Re-entry to Society from Prison and Reconnection with Children, which aims to prevent such tragic deaths by immediately connecting women who are leaving the N.C. Correctional Institution for Women with support and treatment resources. Based on the success of this pilot project, it has great promise to serve as a national and international model.

Elisabeth Johnson, PhD, NP

Every day, Dr. Johnson’s smiling face can be seen moving between patient rooms in the Horizons’ onsite OB/GYN clinic, leading the weekly women’s health group, triaging medical questions/concerns for the women and children to prevent unnecessary urgent care and ER visits, consulting with other staff members on patient cases, and training a new generation of providers in Horizons’ model of integrated care.

Recently, Dr. Johnson jumped into action to help Horizons navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. As the only onsite medical provider, she worked with şÚÁĎÍř’s health system to ensure that Horizons complied with the rapidly changing directives regarding patient care, personal protective equipment (PPE), infection control and prevention. Such work involved constant emails, Zoom meetings, and phone calls to secure the information and supplies to meet Horizons’ needs, followed by trips to deliver PPE and support to the staff providing 24/7 care at Horizons’ two residential programs. She offered advice about new ways to safely deliver services, and addressed the fears of patients and staff.

Under Dr. Johnson’s leadership and guidance, and with amazing teamwork from the entire team, Horizons has risen to the challenge of this pandemic and is continuing to provide critical treatment services and a sense of safety to the women and children in all its programs. Thank you, Dr. Johnson!

Hendrée Jones, Ph.D., is an internationally recognized expert in the development and examination of both behavioral and pharmacologic treatments for pregnant women and their children in risky life situations.