The social needs of pregnant women abusing illegal substances

Abstract

This dissertation aims to identify the social needs of pregnant women abusing illegal substances so that social workers and other helping professionals could assist these women to meet their social needs. Specifically, it seeks to create an understanding of the experience of being pregnant and abusing illicit drugs. A combination of quantitative and qualitative methodology is used in this study, focusing mainly on qualitative research method. Semi-structured interviews are used where the issues and problems faced by twelve women who abused drugs during pregnancy are explored. A feminist perspective is adopted which emphasises that women are experts of their own experiences and are fully capable of expressing them. The participants' perspectives regarding prenatal substance abuse backed up with literature on this study area succeeds to describe the experiences of substance abusers and identify their social needs. Analysis of the collected data show that prenatal substance abuse is often accompanied by an array of social problems both prior to pregnancy and throughout pregnancy. The types of life factors that can be associated with or that may seem to have led to drug abuse during pregnancy are family dysfunction, educational underachievement, physical and/or sexual abuse and partner's drug use. Furthermore, menstruation cycles become intermittent when using heroin which led to the common belief that they could not get pregnant. Hence, most often pregnancies were unplanned. Concerns on their unborn child encouraged women to stop or to reduce drug use during pregnancy. This study also aims to investigate the perceptions and expectations of the services. In Malta, there is no service specifically for pregnant women abusing drugs and the help available is fragmented and uncoordinated. Women reported experiences of stigmatisation and discrimination when using services in Malta. A general barrier to services is the fear of losing custody of their child. The most common social needs of pregnant women abusing illicit substances as identified by the women themselves are: clear information on effects of drugs on foetus, counselling on physical and sexual abuse, financial assistance, stable jobs, housing, parental skills and a place in which various services are provided both as an outpatient basis and as a residential basis where childcare and transportation are provided, To conclude, this study suggests means in which social workers and other helping professionals can provide services for pregnant drug abusers based on their perceptions of their own requirements in which the informal network of support is emphasised. This is because significant others seem to play an important role in the lives of pregnant drug abusers.