Allegheny Health Network – Department of Psychiatry

Allegheny Health Network has an extensive network of healthcare facilities with different departments and specialties throughout the region. This particular location is their psychiatric department in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

This psychiatric department mostly focuses on treating mental illnesses but they do have a specialized program for substance abuse. This program is specifically for people with drug and alcohol addiction who are pregnant.

The program for addiction recovery here is called the Perinatal Hope Program. They partner with several OB/GYN offices including some in Pittsburgh.

Your treatment for substance use disorder in this program will be personalized to you and what will best benefit your recovery. You’ll have group therapy with other moms in recovery. If you have opioid addiction they may also provide medication assisted treatment or MAT. This uses particular medications that reduce your physical addiction symptoms like cravings and withdrawal symptoms.

What I think is especially interesting about this program is that they combine addiction treatment in pregnancy with prenatal care. At the same appointment and the same clinic you can get your medical prenatal care along with addiction treatment.

During the program you’ll learn important parenting skills along with working through the challenges of sobriety and developing the skills and growth for addiction recovery. It also includes hepatitis C testing and applicable treatment plus they can connect you to any specialists you might need during your pregnancy.

I think it’s important to note that this program doesn’t end when you give birth. The postpartum period can be difficult for addiction recovery too and they’ll help you through it at every step of the way. They can also link you with more ongoing resources after your baby is born like continuing addiction counseling and pediatric care.

The feedback from clients here is generally mediocre. Some clients have been thrilled with their psychiatrists but a lot of clients say that the providers change often so they’re always getting acquainted with a new psychiatrist and adjusting to different treatment plans.