The protocol reduces length of stay and the duration of treatment with opioids that are used therapeutically to wean babies off of drugs.
"The incidence of neonatal abstinence syndrome after an infant's in utero exposure to opioids has risen dramatically in recent years," says Eric Hall, PhD, a researcher in the Perinatal Institute at Cincinnati Children's and lead author of the study. "After adoption of the protocol, opioid treatment went from 34 to 23 days, and length of hospital inpatient stay dropped from nearly 32 days to about 24."
in 2013, hospitals in the Cincinnati area became the first to begin widespread universal drug testing of all expectant mothers. Ohio law does not require notification of law enforcement if a maternal test is positive, unless there is suspicion of criminal behavior that directly affects the safety or well-being of the newborn. This diffuses the possibility of drug tests leading to criminal charges and increases the likelihood of expectant mothers agreeing to provide a urine sample.
"Prior to this program, one of four women using opioids went undetected. Today we are detecting nearly all,"