The Mommies Clinic: A Perinatal Education Project [ID 1049]

INTRODUCTION: The Mommies Program, established in 2007 through collaboration with several San Antonio–based programs, was developed in response to the opioid crisis in San Antonio. It offers comprehensive prenatal care for pregnant women with substance use disorder (SUD), including medication-assisted treatment with methadone and buprenorphine. METHODS: After their medical appointments, patients participated in educational sessions led by second-year medical students. One of four lessons—neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), nutrition, domestic violence, or postpartum depression—was selected based on pregnancy stage. Pre- and post-surveys measured knowledge gained and lesson effectiveness. RESULTS: For the 67 women who completed the NAS lesson, knowledge increased from 73.9% to 95.8%, with 88.1% reporting they learned something new. Among 61 women who received the nutrition lesson, knowledge rose from 60.7% to 83.6%, with 85.2% reporting they learned something new. For the 44 women who participated in the domestic violence session, knowledge improved from 89.8% to 97.3%, with 91.0% reporting they learned something new. In the postpartum depression group, 31 women showed an increase in knowledge from 74.7% to 92.5%, with 96.8% reporting they learned something new. CONCLUSIONS/IMPLICATIONS: The student-led curriculum was effective in increasing patient knowledge across all topics. Medical students served as competent educators for this population. Limitations include a small, specific sample size, lack of formal evaluation of teaching skills, and reduced participation in the postpartum depression session due to its postpartum timing. These findings support continued use of student-led education in prenatal care for women with SUD.