Breaking the Cycle: Supporting Children with Prenatal Substance Exposure
Breaking the Cycle (BTC) is an early identification and prevention program designed to reduce risk and to enhance the development for substance-exposed children (prenatal – 6 years) by providing services which address maternal addiction problems and the mother-child relationship through a community based cross-systemic model.
With funding through Brock’s Council for Research in Social Sciences (CRISS) award, Dr. Andrews is working on a project that uses a retrospective chart review to 1) provide a profile of infants and young children who have been exposed to substances prenatally, contextualizing their presenting concerns, risk factors, and treatment needs; 2) assess improvements in child functioning and behaviour as a result of an integrated relationship-focused intervention; and 3) explore how improvements in the mother-child relationship enhance child development outcomes.
This project is being conducted in collaboration with Dr. Debra Pepler, Dr. Mary Motz, and Mothercraft’s Breaking the Cycle program.
For more information on this project, click here.
Andrews, N. C. Z., Motz, M., Bondi, B. C., Leslie, M., & Pepler, D. J. (2019). Using a developmental-relational approach to understand the impact of interpersonal violence in women who struggle with substance use. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16, 1-14. doi: 10.3390/ijerph16234861
Motz, M., Andrews, N. C. Z., Bondi, B. C., Leslie, M., & Pepler, D. J. (2019). Addressing the impact of interpersonal violence in women who struggle with substance use through developmental-relational strategies in a community program. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16, 1-9. doi: 10.3390/ijerph16214197
Andrews, N. C. Z., Motz, M., Pepler, D. J., Jeong, J. J., & Khoury, J. (2018). Engaging mothers with substance use issues and their children in early intervention: Understanding use of service and outcomes. Child Abuse and Neglect, 83, 10-20. doi: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2018.06.011