St. Scholastica Doctor of Nursing students create a long-lasting impact on maternal substance abuse care

Inspired to make a difference, three Doctor of Nursing Practice students — Kim Anderson (DNP ’26), Hailey Mathison (DNP ’27), and Dayo “Dee” Taiwo (DNP ’26) — partnered with Wilderness Health and Aspirus St. Luke’s to address a pressing issue in maternal healthcare: the impact of substance use disorders on pregnant women and their families.

Their DNP project, titled “Improving Outcomes for Pregnant Women and Families: Education on Substance Use Disorders,” reflects the trio’s commitment to understanding the needs of healthcare professionals and developing tools that provide essential support. “We chose this project because we wanted to make a difference for pregnant patients who struggle with substance use,” emphasized Mathison.

According to Mathison, there is significant stigma and discomfort surrounding the topic of harm reduction, and often providers and staff receive limited training in how to engage in supportive conversations with patients. The project aimed to enhance the knowledge and confidence of healthcare providers, enabling them to deliver more empathetic and effective care. Additionally, the initiative sought to make a meaningful impact on the local community. To achieve this, the team partnered with Wilderness Health, Aspirus St. Luke’s, and the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) to translate their findings from the DNP program into practical, real-world applications.

A reflection of personal and professional goals

For the graduate nursing students, the project was more than a class requirement; it was a reflection of their personal and professional goals. Anderson shared that she instantly connected with the topic idea. “Our group had similar experiences when we thought about the impact this could have here in this area, along with the ongoing need for this type of involvement and training,” Anderson said. “I know that for me, looking at all the options we could choose from, this was the one that stood out amongst all the others.”

Taiwo also felt compelled to address the substance use among pregnant women as a growing global issue: “When we looked at the topics, what stood out was the concept that substance abuse is increasing, not just in Minnesota but globally. There’s a need for resources to address this issue because if we ignore it, it will impact every developmental stage. So it was difficult, professionally as well as personally to see a woman struggle with things like this and not have resources.”

From stigma to support

The group’s commitment to this project has been meaningfully reflected in the impact it has had. Taiwo noted that the project had already been implemented as a key aspect of the training requirements at a hospital in Duluth. She explained how this initiative could serve as a valuable resource, illustrating its potential to be adopted not only by clinics and hospitals locally, but also on a global scale. The impact of the design and training they had created was poised to reach far and wide, fostering improvements in healthcare practices across various regions.

“We can already see promising results from the survey and the trainings as we implemented the projects,” Taiwo said, reflecting on the project’s goals and the importance of educating providers. “The goal was to educate the providers, provide them with knowledge and resources on how to care. They are always the first stop for pregnant women. So if the foundation of the baseline is solid with information, knowledge, and understanding, then we can easily develop resources that can easily develop into helping these women for real.”

Identifying attitudes and addressing stigma

Although the initial results are promising, patients still face stigma associated with substance use during pregnancy while seeking care from providers. Anderson explained the challenges this stigma presents for patients: “I think initially we found that there was a need to help the staff and the caregivers approach this topic with the patients. I was surprised there’s such a need for that, just being able to know the right words to say.”

The group was able to review survey results collected by Wilderness Health and could tailor the training to meet the needs identified by the staff. They were also able to begin identifying the attitudes and perspectives that could hinder progress. Anderson added, “Simply laying the foundation or that framework and using it to move forward and address other areas is helpful; I think identifying what the stigma was or is, and then tailoring our education to that and having that open discussion, was really important as well.”

Improving provider education and patient experience

Anderson, Mathison, and Taiwo shared their experiences working with their supervisor, Dr. Lisa Starr, assistant professor of Graduate Nursing, whose support proved invaluable to the project’s success. “She has a lot of experience in QI projects, and I think that was just amazing for us because this is new to us, and we didn’t know where to start, or when we got lost, we didn’t know how to navigate that. And she helped keep us afloat the whole way through. So we’re really grateful for her,” Mathison said.

“She was amazing,” Taiwo added. “She was the one who cleared the way when things were backlogged.”

As a result of their collective work, Wilderness Health and Aspirus St. Luke’s now have new insights and strategies into addressing substance use in pregnancy. Funded by the Minnesota Department of Health and the Enhancing Outcomes for Pregnant and Postpartum Families Impacted by Substance Use Disorder (EOPI-SUD) grant, the students furthered efforts to improve provider education, reduce stigma, and create resources for healthcare providers and their patients.