NDARC videos help support pregnant women who use alcohol or other drugs
June 2017
The National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) has developed a series of videos to help health care professionals support pregnant women who use alcohol or other drugs.
The videos outline how the NDARC resource Supporting pregnant women who use alcohol or other drugs - A Guide for Primary Health Care Professionals can be used in a range of health care settings.
Each video has a different focus and highlights how the resource can be used.
- Supporting pregnant women who use alcohol or other drugs: Barriers to care
- Supporting pregnant women who use alcohol or other drugs: Care and treatment
- Supporting pregnant women who use alcohol or other drugs: Specific drugs
The Guide provides an overview of how to identify women who use alcohol or other drugs and support them with the treatment they may require.
It is intended for a range of primary health care professionals including GPs, midwives, nurses, practice nurses, Aboriginal health care workers and sexual health workers, and includes guidance on how to ask about alcohol and other drug use.
The Guide:
- Outlines how primary care professionals can effectively identify pregnant women who have problematic alcohol and other drug use and respond to their needs.
- Provides links to tools for screening, assessment, brief intervention, guidelines, training and other resources.
- Draws on the NSW Clinical Guidelines for the Management of Substance Use during Pregnancy, Birth and the Postnatal Period for information about pharmacological and other clinical management strategies.
Evidence shows that well-coordinated and comprehensive support with early access to antenatal care and specialist alcohol or drug treatment can reduce harm and improve outcomes for pregnant women who have problematic alcohol and drug use, and their babies.
A Quick Guide is available to assist health care professionals to utilise the resource.
Supporting pregnant women who use alcohol or other drugs - A Guide for Primary Health Care Professionals, the associated Quick Guide and video series are all available on the NDARC website.
