Integrated Care in the Perinatal Period: A Peer-driven Recovery Support Model

Pregnant and postpartum women with substance use disorders (SUD) often face complex and compounding barriers to care, including stigma, fragmented services, and a lack of tailored supports. Integrated, trauma-informed models are essential to addressing these challenges and improving both maternal and family outcomes. This webinar, hosted by the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, will spotlight Moms Do Care, an innovative initiative of the Massachusetts Bureau of Substance Addiction Services, which provides holistic support to pregnant and postpartum women with SUD or those in recovery.

The Moms Do Care program connects women to critical services—including prenatal and postpartum medical care, counseling, case management, and linkage to housing and social supports—through a person-centered and trust-building approach. A cornerstone of the program is its use of peer support specialists—women with lived experience who play a transformative role in engaging participants, providing mentorship, and helping clients navigate care systems.

Presenters will share the program’s development, implementation, and lessons learned, highlighting how this model improves maternal retention in care, enhances birth outcomes, and fosters long-term family stability. The session will also address broader workforce challenges that impact the sustainability and expansion of similar programs, including limited pipelines of trained professionals, salary disparities, credentialing barriers, and staff burnout—underscoring how peer roles can serve as both a solution and a bridge to more equitable, effective care.