# Optimizing Pregnancy and Treatment Interventions for Moms 2.0

> **NIH ALLCDC R01** · UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH · 2020 · $602,979

## Abstract

PUBLIC ABSTRACT
Opioid use disorder (OUD) among pregnant women results in a number of adverse consequences in infants and
mothers, including: preterm birth, low birth weight, birth defects, neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), and cog-
nitive deficits in children. Pregnant women with OUD have elevated rates of HIV/HCV infection, psychiatric dis-
orders, non-opioid substance use disorder (SUD); and social, financial, and employment problems. Pregnant
women with OUD also have had sharp increases in treatment admissions in the last decade. Unfortunately,
pregnant women with OUD also have high rates of treatment dropout. While medication assisted treatment com-
bined with psychosocial services is the standard of care for opioid dependent pregnant women, it is not clear
which psychosocial service is optimal. One promising intervention is patient navigation (PN), an evidence-based
practice shown to be effective for a variety of psycho/social/emotional outcomes. PN has been shown to benefit
problems common in those with OUD, including access to treatment, engagement in care, and motivation to
improve health behaviors. The current study will build on our preliminary studies and further establish the internal
and external validity of these findings and the potential value of the PN intervention. The first Specific Aim of this
project will involve using Marlatt and Gordon’s relapse prevention model wherein we will infuse relapse preven-
tion content for identification/prevention of (1) high risk situations of discontinuance of medication assisted treat-
ment and (2) initial abstinence lapses. The second Specific Aim of this project will involve expanding our proof-
of-concept study intervention and protocols to facilitate a multisite, randomized, system-wide trial; which will
include uniform intervention, recruitment, randomization, study staff blinding, formalized follow up procedures,
and staff training materials. The third Specific Aim of this project will involve implementing and testing the ex-
panded intervention and protocols with pregnant women with OUD (n=122) at two hospital sites, Magee-Wom-
ens Hospital of UPMC and the University of Utah Hospital. Participants will be randomized to PN or standard
care and will be assessed at baseline, prior to delivery, and 2 and 6 months postnatal. Completion of this project
will result in necessary protocols/procedures and pilot data preparatory to a large scale, fully powered, multisite
randomized trial. This work addresses a major public health issue, opioid dependence during pregnancy, and
further establishes an evidence base for protecting health of mother and baby.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10003106
- **Project number:** 5R01CE002996-03
- **Recipient organization:** UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH
- **Principal Investigator:** Gerald T. Cochran
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** ALLCDC
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $602,979
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-09-30 → 2021-09-29

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10003106

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10003106, Optimizing Pregnancy and Treatment Interventions for Moms 2.0 (5R01CE002996-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10003106. Licensed CC0.

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