At the Yellowstone City-County Health Department, resource workers, nurses and dietitians team up to help pregnant women get whatever community services they need for a healthy pregnancy. Among the 518 women Better Babies served last year from a four-county area, 51.7 percent reported some amount of drinking after becoming pregnant, 38.6 percent reported smoking cigarettes and 14.7 percent reported illegal substance use, usually methamphetamine or marijuana. When substance use is an issue, the Better Babies program can help a woman to get an evaluation of the problem and get into inpatient or outpatient treatment as needed, Biersdorf said. Because cigarettes, alcohol and drug abuse pose risks to the health of mothers and babies, St. Vincent Hospital has a chemical dependency counselor on staff at the Elizabeth Seton Prenatal Clinic. The counselor offers hypnosis for those who want to stop smoking and can make referrals to appropriate drug and alcohol treatment.
Smoking is probably our biggest drug problem.
Drug use is the No. 1 reason why women delay seeking prenatal care, Loge said. Women who continue to use drugs may not seek care until late in pregnancy, she said. Sometimes, being pregnant will influence a woman to stop using, Loge said. She said the Seton clinic emphasizes what women can change for the better. There are very few women who can stay clean without inpatient treatment for cocaine and methamphetamine.