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Improving Care for Pregnant and Postpartum People with Substance Use Disorders 

Nearly half (48%) of all pregnancy-related deaths in 2016–17 were due to an overdose, according to the Wisconsin Maternal Mortality Report. The ripple effects of substance use disorders (SUDs) are profound, impacting families and communities.  

To address this pressing issue, the Wisconsin Perinatal Quality Collaborative (WisPQC) launched an 18-month initiative to improve care for pregnant and postpartum people with SUDs. The collaborative consists of approximately 20 hospital teams across Wisconsin and is based on the Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health (AIM) patient safety bundle. The collaborative focuses on improving identification and treatment of SUDs and preventing overdoses through: 

  • enhanced screening,  
  • referral to treatment,  
  • community resources,  
  • discharge planning, and  
  • healthcare provider education. 

Collaborative Goals

The collaborative runs from July 2023 to May 2025, with active participation from hospitals from October 2023 through October 2024. This collaborative is designed to make measurable improvements in care through: 

  • Universal Screening for SUD: Increase the percentage of pregnant and postpartum patients screened for SUDs by 60% 

    Current Progress: 64%
  • Referral to Treatment: Ensure that 80% of those screening positive are referred to recovery services and treatment.

    Current Progress: TBD
  • Resource Sharing: Expect that 90% of participating hospitals will provide a comprehensive list of local recovery resources to patients and hospital teams.

    Current Progress: 84%
     

Quality Improvement Strategies

Participating hospitals will utilize three key quality improvement strategies: 

  1. Evidence-Based Care: Implementation of evidence-based guidelines from the AIM change package. 
  2. Rapid Cycle Change Testing: Using the Model for Improvement’s “Plan, Do, Study, Act” (PDSA) cycles to drive and assess changes. 
  3. Collaborative Learning: Hospitals will share knowledge, apply proven methodologies, and track progress through regular collaborative calls and action periods. 

These initiatives are supported by Cooperative Agreement Number, DP006359, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

The contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the Department of Health and Human Services.