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NIDA's Prenatal Action for Taking Healthy Steps (PATHS) Toolkit Now Available!

Published:
October 2, 2024
A pregnant woman speaking with another woman with the PATHS Toolkit logo underneath them.

The opioid-use epidemic in the U.S. has been associated with a significant increase in the prevalence of pregnant persons with opioid use disorder (OUD).  Opioid-related overdose is now a leading cause of death in pregnant and postpartum individuals. Medications for OUD (MOUD) are effective in preventing opioid-related overdoses in pregnant and postpartum individuals (PP), as well as improving pregnancy outcomes, but are underutilized in part due to inaccurate perceptions.  This population faces stigma in healthcare settings as well; it is critical that healthcare providers assist in advocating for the receipt of MOUD with their patients Disparities have been found in the receipt of MOUD for racial and ethnic minority patient populations compared with White, non-Hispanic individuals; similar disparities have been found in rural populations.

To help address these disparities, The Prenatal Action for Taking Healthy Steps (PATHS) toolkit was developed by a collaboration among clinicians, researchers, persons with lived experience, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse Clinical Trials Network (NIDA CTN) Dissemination Initiative to help break down the barriers caused by misinformation about treatment for OUD during pregnancy and postpartum.  The toolkit contains flyers, info sheets, and posters that can be printed and distributed/posted, an educational video, three short reels featuring persons with lived experience, social media posts, and a discussion guide that can be used to direct conversations about MOUD in pregnant/postpartum people either in a group or individual setting.  In addition, the site features external links that can be helpful to the public, as well as a document explaining how the materials were developed. 

The toolkit can be accessed at https://ctnlibrary.org/paths-oud-nida-ctn-di/

PATHS toolkit QR code
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