COLUMBIA, Mo. – The rate of opioid use among pregnant women in the United States quadrupled between 1999 and 2014 and continues to rise – an alarming trend that researchers at the University of Missouri and U.S. of Iowa, shed light on the stigma felt around opioids. -addicted mothers and how their shame negatively impacted the health care their infants received.
Jamie Morton led a study, which was a metasynthesis of existing literature on the topic, as a doctoral student at the MU Sinclair School of Nursing. She said the findings can help ensure that health care providers, family members, friends and community members emphasize messages of support and compassion toward mothers addicted to opioids. during the perinatal phase, which in this study was defined as one year before conception, pregnancy and up to 18-24 months after delivery.
“We found that because mothers felt bad about themselves, they withdrew from health care,” Morton said.
Morton added that because mothers often received no emotional or social support from healthcare providers, family, friends or community members, they felt guilty and internalized the stigma.
“What was surprising was that the stigma was also transferred to the baby, a term known as associative stigma. Mothers felt like their infants were not receiving the same level of care or were being treated differently,” Morton said. “Mothers were simply opting out of receiving health care in an effort to protect their child from stigma, so they were less likely to take their baby to the pediatrician and less likely to take advantage of developmental services for their baby.” .
Morton explained that this sometimes led to mothers being labeled “mavericks” or “bad mothers.”
Researchers analyzed and synthesized 18 qualitative studies involving women of childbearing age in the United States who expressed feelings of stigma due to their dependence on opioids during the perinatal phase, as well as the impact of this stigma on care health benefits they received for themselves and their babies.
“How often do we hear the expression “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree”? » said Morton. “Personally, I think everyone should have a chance and be treated with the same kindness and compassion as anyone else.”
Morton once worked in a newborn nursery and remembers mothers being very withdrawn.
“I made it a point to treat them like any other mom, because all moms deserve our support as nurses and health care providers,” Morton said. “We just need to give them the opportunity to stay at the center of their health care decisions, both for them and their baby, as well as to promote their role as a mom.”
The research could potentially lead to more formal education that could include trauma-informed care, topics such as trust, active listening, unconscious bias and not judging based on assumptions. This could lead mothers addicted to opioids to feel more comfortable accessing care for themselves, taking their baby to the pediatrician, or taking advantage of developmental services for their baby. This would ultimately improve long-term health outcomes for both mother and baby.
“This goes well beyond nurses and health care providers, who, in general, do a great job showing support, kindness and compassion to the patients they serve,” Morton said. “This extends to the importance of family, friends, community members and the general public who show support, kindness and compassion. It is an honor and privilege to uplift the voices of these vulnerable women, as their voices are not usually heard, but they must. so that we can meet their health care needs.
“Stigma Felt by Perinatal Opioid-Dependent Women in the United States: A Qualitative Metasynthesis” was recently published in the Western Journal of Nursing Research. Funding was provided by the National Institutes of Health through a training grant awarded to the MU Sinclair School of Nursing.
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