More pregnant mothers addicted to heroin

Local program launched to treat mom, babies

Local hospitals are seeing five times more pregnant opiate addicts than other areas of the country, and those women are 600 times more likely to lose their babies because of the addiction, according to new data from Premier Health.

The news comes days after a Harrison Twp. woman died shortly after miscarrying her baby following a heroin overdose. Linda Wing, 28, was wheeled into Grandview Medical Center on Saturday by a neighbor, hours after she lost her baby at home. The fetus was estimated to be about six weeks old.

On April 27, a Dayton police officer used a Narcan kit to revive a pregnant woman found unresponsive from a heroin overdose on Blommel Lane.

It’s a problem that Dr. David McKenna said he sees as medical director of the perinatal care center at Miami Valley Hospital “on a weekly basis.”

“You see these women, they are taking the drugs that are hurting their babies, but on the other hand, they’re here and they’re asking for help,” McKenna said.

Premier Health operates Miami Valley Hospital, which provided care for 106 pregnant mothers addicted to opiates, mostly heroin, in 2013. Data for 2014 isn’t available yet. The majority of babies born by these mothers at MVH were diagnosed with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome, meaning they were also addicted to opiates. Caring for these infants required them to stay in the hospital for 26 days on average, according to the health organization.

Treatment isn’t as simple as getting off heroin when the patient is pregnant, McKenna said. Withdrawal symptoms often lead to dehydration and fetal death. Meanwhile, traditional drug-assisted treatments such as methadone are toxic to unborn babies.

“Promise to Hope” is a new program being launched by Premier Health in conjunction with Samaritan Behavioral Health, Turning Point and the ADAMHS board. It is aimed at treating pregnant addicts to protect and improve the quality of life for the mothers and their babies.

The program is to begin in June and will enroll 100 patients for nine months. Funded through $600,000 in donations, “Promise to Hope” will offer treatment,

classes, transportation and childcare for expectant mothers. Incentives allow participants to earn points for attending classes and staying clean that can be redeemed for items such as diapers and baby clothes. Babies will receive additional aid through Patient Care Technicians, who will hold babies 24-hours a day, which studies show reduces the need for treatment in drug-addicted babies.

The program aims to improves the lives of moms and babies while reducing medical costs and lowering infant mortality rates across the Miami Valley, McKenna said.

“The other option is to sent them back out on the street, and I don’t think anyone is comfortable doing that,” McKenna said. “That isn’t the solution.”

The Miami Valley Hospital Foundation is still seeking donations. Those interested in participating in the “Promises to Hope” program should seek treatment at Miami Valley Hospital.

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