What are we doing?
The adverse effects of alcohol and other drugs such as tobacco, psychostimulants and opioids on fetaldevelopment are well known. Women who use substances and are pregnant or who may become pregnant are therefore a high priority for interventions to reduce drug use. The national clinical guidelines for the management of drug use during pregnancy, birth and the early development years of the newborn (the Guidelines) were commissioned by the Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy and were published in March 2006. The aim of the Guidelines was to develop a comprehensive, coherent and consistent approach to the clinical care of women with problematic drug or alcohol use during pregnancy and to the care of mother and child in the early developmental stages of the child’s life. The Guidelines are intended for use by all health care practitioners working with pregnant women experiencing a drug or alcohol problem. The purpose of this project is to:
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Review and update the Guidelines for use in the NSW context.
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Develop a dissemination strategy for the revised Guidelines.