The Meadowlark Initiative® is a Montana Healthcare Foundation initiative that integrates prenatal care and behavioral health to improve maternal and neonatal outcomes. This limited, mid-course evaluation assesses the initiative’s impact and is intended to inform implementation work moving forward. The evaluation found that care coordination, in particular, plays a central role in improving outcomes – from … Continued
The opioid epidemic in the United States contributes to a growing need to address substance use disorders (SUDs) in the perinatal period. Women with SUD are at risk for poor pregnancy-related outcomes, and their newborns can suffer withdrawal symptoms known as neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), which can lead to the infant’s removal from their family … Continued
Drug use in pregnancy is a serious public health problem in Montana. Despite evidence that the problem is on the rise, Montana has a severe shortage of treatment for pregnant women with substance use disorders. The number of Montana children in foster care more than doubled since 2011: out of more than 3,200 children in … Continued