Pregnancy and parenting can be challenging for anyone. Women with a history of substance use are especially vulnerable as they adapt to this new stage of life. Pregnant and postpartum individuals in recovery are at risk for relapse, but your recovery journey can start with a single step.
What Is STEPS at Lancaster General Health?
If you’ve struggled with drug or alcohol addiction, we offer the support you need to stay on track during and after pregnancy. Our substance use recovery for pregnant and postpartum women program, also called STEPS, is part of Healthy Beginnings Plus.
STEPS empowers individuals with the tools and knowledge they need to have a healthy pregnancy and be the best parent they can be. Moms-to-be receive in-home visits from experienced nurses, social workers and a community health worker with experience in pregnancy and addiction recovery. This compassionate team continues to support you for up to one year after you give birth. We guide mothers in their pregnancy journey and substance use recovery.
Am I Eligible for STEPS?
You’re eligible for this program if you are:
- A Pennsylvania resident
- Have a history of substance use
- Pregnant or until your baby turns 1 year old
Our Services for Pregnancy and Addiction Recovery
We offer a variety of services as part of our substance abuse treatment program for pregnant women, all tailored to your unique needs:
- Care coordination with your health-care providers
- Education on infant withdrawal symptoms, including Eat, Sleep, Console
- Home nursing visits or visits to residential treatment facilities
- Infant CPR and safety education
- Labor and delivery education and planning, including pain management
- Referrals to community support resources, such as 12-step programs or counseling
- Relapse prevention and self-care
- Screenings for anxiety and depression
- Stress management and relaxation techniques
- Virtual and in-person recovery support groups to connect you with other moms
Eat, Sleep, Console
Women enrolled in Healthy Beginnings Plus and STEPS deliver at Women & Babies Hospital. At the hospital, we use an evidence-based technique called Eat, Sleep, Console to watch and treat babies with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). NAS can occur when a baby is exposed to substances in the womb during pregnancy. Infants born with NAS can experience withdrawal after birth.
Eat, Sleep, Console helps mothers soothe their babies naturally, reducing or eliminating the need for withdrawal medication or a NICU stay. Mothers stay with their babies to breastfeed, provide skin-to-skin contact and enable sound sleep. Eat, Sleep, Console is a milder therapeutic alternative to NICU care. This approach has been shown to:
- Improve breastfeeding rates
- Lessen or eliminate the need for morphine to treat withdrawal symptoms
- Provide a more family-centered approach to care.
- Reduce the length of hospital stays for newborns with NAS
Contact Us
Call 717-544-4305 or text 717-669-2485 to learn more about STEPS.