Strategies

Use specialized courts to offer criminal offenders with drug dependency problems an alternative to adjudication or incarceration

Provide at-risk expectant parents and families with young children with information, support, and training regarding child health, development, and care from prenatal stages through early childhood via trained home visitors

Use specialized courts to work with parents involved in the child welfare system who may lose custody of their children due to substance abuse

Offer loan repayment, tuition assistance, competitive academic salaries, etc. to students who teach in nursing programs after completing an advanced degree

Teach parenting skills in a group setting using a standardized curriculum, often based on behavioral or cognitive-behavioral approaches and focused on parents of at-risk children

Increase wages and benefits for personal or home care workers, nurse aides, and others who provide direct care to patients in long-term care (LTC) settings

Provide medications such as methadone to individuals diagnosed with opioid use disorder in outpatient, residential, and hospital settings, usually with counseling and behavioral therapies; often called MAT

Provide home visiting services to low income, first time mothers and their babies, starting during pregnancy and continuing through a child’s second birthday

Improve work environments for nurses via establishment of strong nursing leadership, organizational support, etc.

Provide sterile injection equipment and often other treatment and referral services to people who inject drugs; also called needle or syringe exchange programs and needle syringe programs