Women Who Use Drugs (WWUD) Workgroup:

The NYSDOH AIDS Institute Office of Drug User Health (ODUH) leads a Women Who Use Drugs Workgroup (WWUD) which provides educational opportunities and supports to increase provider capacity to give wholistic, stigma-free health care and linkages to care for women, pregnant and parenting people who use drugs.  

Workgroup presentations provide education and resources to support NYS clinical and community providers in serving women, pregnant and parenting people with substance use disorder (SUD) /opioid use disorder (OUD) and other marginalized populations, including sex workers, trans, and non-binary individuals. 

Workgroup leaders seek out New York-based presenters with lived and/or professional experience who can speak to the subject matter at hand. This workgroup operates under a health and racial equity framework. The focus of the workgroup is to:

Explore and identify regional trends impacting or pertaining to WWUD
Understand barriers to care which WWUD experience
Develop strategies to decrease stigma and increase opportunities to engage WWUD in care.

Topics explored in past presentations include informed consent and bodily autonomy, coercive contraception, trauma-informed care, harm reduction during pregnancy, birth justice, the intersection of addiction and abortion, the war on drugs, teen pregnancy, culturally appropriate care, the role of doulas, PrEP for women, sex workers, transgender and gender nonconforming care, racism and the war on drugs, and Medicaid.

In addition to the workgroup presentations, ODUH’s WWUD leaders also work to expand the existing health care systems’ capacities to serve women, pregnant, and parenting people who use drugs. We build and strengthen relationships at the state level by partnering with fellow government agencies to address barriers that ODUH’s programs face in serving these populations. On the local level, we connect programs that directly serve women, pregnant, and parenting people who use drugs with technical assistance and supplies.

Additional Resources

Recordings and summary of presentations below:

2/10/23 Dinah Ortiz Adames, "Thinking outside the box". This presentation discussed supporting pregnant and parenting people within the intersections of The Child Regulation System (Child Protective Services) and Harm Reduction.
3/10/23 Katherine Bogen, "Trauma-Informed Responses to Disclosure of Sexual & Gender-Based Violence". Social reactions to disclosures of violence significantly impact survivors’ post-traumatic functioning and healing processes. Session attendees learned how to respond supportively to interpersonal violence disclosures, with guidelines based on the best psychological literature on survivor support.
4/7/23 Kelly Ramsey and Katie Seward - OASAS, "Understanding SUD in Women, Pregnant, and Parenting Persons". This presentation looked at substance use disorders (SUD) in women with a focus on pregnant and parenting persons. Participants were provided with an overview of the epidemiology of substance use, substance use disorders, and overdose in this population, the impact of stigma, treatment options available in New York, and relevant resources that participants can use to better support this vulnerable population.
5/12/23 Dr. Ednita Wright, "Wisdom Keepers: The Unseen Epidemic". This workshop reviewed statistics regarding substance use among Wisdom Keepers (geriatric users), with a focus on women. We examined the causes of substance use in this population, outreach efforts to said population, and helpful treatment methods. The Rapport, Empathy, Support, Partnership, Explanations, Cultural Competency, and Trust (RESPECT) model was discussed regarding being respectful through our language, body language, and interactions with elderly clients.
6/9/23 Rwaida Izar - NYCDOHMH, "Assessing Womxn-focused Programming at Syringe Service Programs". In this presentation, she described the summary of a needs assessment that was conducted to assess existing programs and services for womxn who use drugs (defined as any person who identifies with the category of womxn, including but not limited to trans womxn, cisgender womxn, and non-binary persons) that syringe service programs (SSPs) in New York City provided in 2022, the programs and services they hope to provide in the future, and the barriers SSPs face in reaching, retaining, and implementing services for WWUD. We hope this body of work will be used to justify funding opportunities for womxn-focused programming at SSPs in the future.
7/12/23 Dr. Leah Habersham -The Bridge Program, "The Bridge Program: an integrated model to treat addiction in the OBGYN setting". The presentation on this integrated program treating addiction and providing OBGYN care in NYC offers a discussion of the landscape of addiction in NYC, as well as true unique challenges affecting this population, and potential interventions to overcome these challenges.
8/11/23 Michelle Gadot and Mariely Fernandez - Center for Comprehensive Health Practices (CCHP), "Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) among Women and Pregnant Persons". This presentation shed light on the prevalence of opioid use disorder in this vulnerable population and examine the legal challenges they face, as well as the barriers to accessing adequate care. We delved into the biological sex and gender differences that impact OUD, with a particular emphasis on the complexities of substance use during pregnancy. Additionally, we explored the significance of pre-natal and post-natal assessments and considerations in optimizing maternal and child health outcomes. Moreover, we analyzed the broader consequences of OUD, known as the "Ripple Effect," and introduced CCHP's pioneering PAAM Program, followed by an insightful case study.
9/8/23 Kasey Edwards Snider, "Harm Reduction Doulas". The presentation describes outcomes from the PNW, program models and low barrier opportunities to utilize people with lived experience to change the experiences of pregnant drug users wherever and whenever we can.
10/13/23 Joelle Puccio, RN-Academy of Perinatal Harm Reduction, "What's Reproductive Harm Reduction?" (not recorded). In this session, the presenter outlined what harm reduction is, and what it is not. The presenter looked at the historical context in which the approach developed, with particular focus on the experiences of women and people of color. Values such as beneficence, autonomy, and any positive change were linked to practical interventions.
11/17/23 Monika Taylor, LCSW, CASAC and Alexandrea Punch, MPA, “CAPTA Plans of Safe Care – A Collaborative Multi-Disciplinary Approach Supporting Pregnant Women with SUD.” In recent years, substance use during pregnancy in the US has increased dramatically, leading to a massive increase in the incidence of infants born with drug and alcohol exposure. Plans of Safe Care (POSC) is a national mandate for health and other service providers to develop plans with mothers that address their substance use treatment, infant safety, family health, and wellness needs. This presentation guided the audience through the POSC legislation and provided instruction on designing, implementing, and evaluating POSC in their service environments. Provider feedback and challenges with implementation were also explored. Audience members were provided with evaluation tools to guide program success.
12/8/23 Laura Churchill, DNP FNP-BC, “Public Health Strategies to Support Pregnant and Parenting Women Who Use Drugs.” This presentation discussed one local health department’s roll out of a low threshold harm reduction MOUD treatment program in their family planning clinic, with discussion of the reproductive health intersections for WWUD. There was a review of overdose deaths by gender and facilitation of how we can better meet the needs of WWUD where they already are.