Intersecting Substance Use Disorder and Unmet Social Needs in Rural Pregnant Women

Objective: To describe the unique challenges faced by rural pregnant women with intersecting substance use disorder (SUD) and unmet social needs.

Design: Secondary qualitative data analysis with an analytic expansion approach.

Setting: Hospital system in northern New England.

Participants: Four rural women with food insecurity who were in recovery for SUD (three were pregnant and one had given birth in the past 15 weeks).

Methods: In the primary qualitative descriptive study, we interviewed 14 women about their experience of food insecurity during the perinatal period, including facilitators and barriers to being screened and accessing referrals for food insecurity and other social needs during prenatal care. This secondary analysis centered on the perspectives of four participants who reflected specifically on receiving material and mental health support through the integration of prenatal care and SUD treatment.

Results: Rural women with SUD who experience social needs during pregnancy have difficulty accessing appropriate prenatal care and maintaining treatment engagement due to intersecting factors (e.g., food and housing insecurity and transportation) and psychological (e.g., mental health challenges, social isolation, and stigma) factors. Participants emphasized the importance of integrating social support within prenatal and substance use care to promote physical and mental health and engagement in SUD treatment.

Conclusion: In line with The Joint Commission's 2022 policy recommendations for universal social determinants of health screening, we support one-stop clinical and social care for pregnant women who face intersecting barriers to health, such as SUD and unmet social needs. Nurses can play an important role in care coordination for people with complex medical and social determinants of health screening needs. This approach is especially relevant to rural areas, where food, housing, and transportation insecurity rates are greater than nonrural areas.