Maryland NAS Training Opportunities

The state of Maryland Department of Health has recently announced a Request for Applications (RFA) seeking to support programs that address opioid related disorders. https://bit.ly/MDDOHRFA. Included in the list of recommended topics is Expansion of treatment for neonatal abstinence syndrome. We have developed Neowithdrawal that is a versatile training platform for nurses and clinicians implementing or sustaining the Eat, Sleep, and Console (ESC) care model for birthparents and infants affected by Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS). It can meet the needs of small and large hospitals alike, at any point of integrating ESC. Neowithdrawal curriculum and competency scenarios provide a robust and customizable solution to support clinicians and parents in caring for infants experiencing NAS or Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome (NOWS) through the ESC Care Model. The Neowithdrawal online curriculum includes a 7-module education course that provides 2 Continuing Nursing Education (CNE) credits. The modules include information about NAS symptoms, the ESC Care Model, pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic treatment, and transition to follow-up care. This course also provides a unique online competency assessment tool to evaluate application of ESC principles in response to video simulation scenarios. These scenarios include Family Birth Center Settings, NICU Care, Pediatric Units, and any Well-Baby Care location. Situations where families are not present are also included. This ensures a broad application across different care environments to promote consistency in outcomes. Hundreds of users have participated in Neowithdrawal's education. The content can be customized with hospital-specific policies, or combined with secure electronic data capture services to provide a quality improvement (QI) program. In addition measurement of the impact of staff attitudes or managerial effectiveness related to NAS can be added to the primary course.