Contextual risk and psychosocial profiles of opioid-using mothers: A mixed-methods study

Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskriftTidsskriftartikelForskningfagfællebedømt

  • Karina Beltrán-Arzate
  • Kevin Hodson
  • Haley K. Tes
  • Sarah Anne H. Bowyer
  • Hollis C. Ratliff
  • Michael M. Abraham
  • Elizabeth Johnson
  • Malinda Harris
  • Jäkel, Julia

Introduction: There is an increase in cases of mothers using opioids during pregnancy in the United States but research investigating mothers’ psychosocial environments along with individual variability among this high-risk group of women is scarce. Methods: This mixed-methods study aims to examine the complex interplay of contextual risks and experiences of opioid-using mothers. A sample of 50 opioid-using biological mothers of infants diagnosed with neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS) were studied using a set of standardized and open-ended questions, along with medical records extraction. Results: A high-risk subgroup of 36 mothers was identified using cluster analysis, characterized by a distinct profile of psychosocial risk. Thematic content analysis revealed four themes: (1) barriers to communication and mistrust of health professionals, (2) limitations of access to health care and the amplification of disadvantages related to COVID-19, (3) lifelong consequences of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and (4) intimate partner violence and its influence on drug use. Conclusion: Our findings highlight important information toward health services provision for opioid-using women of childbearing age. Efforts to reduce opioid usage in mothers need to consider psychosocial and contextual risks.

OriginalsprogEngelsk
TidsskriftWomen's Health
Vol/bind17
ISSN1745-5057
DOI
StatusUdgivet - nov. 2021
Eksternt udgivetJa

Bibliografisk note

Funding Information:
We are highly grateful to our participants and the trust they placed in us. We also want to thank the East Tennessee Children’s Hospital NICU staff for their support of our study. The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This study was funded by the Office of Research and Engagement of the University of Tennessee Knoxville (#2018 SEED Jaekel). Funding for open access to this research was provided by the University of Tennessee’s Open Publishing Support Fund.

Funding Information:
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This study was funded by the Office of Research and Engagement of the University of Tennessee Knoxville (#2018 SEED Jaekel). Funding for open access to this research was provided by the University of Tennessee’s Open Publishing Support Fund.

Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2021.

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