SPOKANE, Wash. – April 7, 2022 – PRLog — Managed Health Connections, LLC announces the launch of our Neowithdrawal mobile technology platform providing Eat, Sleep and Console (ESC) Education Course and Bedside Decision Support. The Neowithdrawal technology provides expanded access to support clinicians and parents providing care for infants diagnosed with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS), also known as Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome (NOWS). We are launching in the Pacific Northwest with plans to expand nationally.
“The online and mobile capabilities of our ESC products make it convenient for clinicians and parents to access important information guiding them to provide the best care for these infants,” said Kim Johnson, Founder and CEO of Managed Health Connections. Maureen Shogan, MN, RNC and Clinical Director said, “I have worked with these infants and their parents for decades and I am excited that we can now provide online access to these tools to improve care, even during a pandemic. We look forward to providing education and competency validation that can make it easier for clinicians to prepare parents of babies exposed to substances prenatally in making the safe transition to home. “
The clinical education and decision support tool kit for clinicians and parents were developed with financial support from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program, contract 75N95020C00020. NIDA who sought to address the increase in NAS/NOWS nationally. From 2010 to 2017, the incidence of NAS increased over 80% nationally, with some states showing increases of over 200%. The incidence of NAS in Washington State was 9.7 cases per 1,000 hospital births in 2017.
Washington State University Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine’s Analytics and Psychopharmacology Laboratory served as primary research partner. Sterling McPherson, Associate Professor and Assistant Dean for Research said, “Our team is proud to have contributed to the development of a technology that will improve care to those affected by neonatal abstinence syndrome. This work is representative of the WSU College of Medicine’s goal to use research as a driver of innovation in challenging healthcare environments and capitalizing on partnerships with industry to achieve this goal.”
MultiCare Deaconess served as the primary clinical partner for the bedside decision support system for clinicians and parents. Jennifer Graham MN, RN and Chief Nurse Executive said, “MultiCare is pleased to provide support for research in the Inland Northwest and for this critical population. We look forward to expanding access to this education program throughout the MultiCare System”.
Kootenai Health supported the initial phase of the research project providing access to staff for validation of the education program.
The technology platform provides educational content and support at the bedside for clinicians and parents caring for infants experiencing NAS or NOWS. While the platform can support multiple methods of care for NAS, the first release supports the concepts of the Eat, Sleep and Console (ESC) model of care. The offering includes:
- A 7-module online training course providing 2 Continuing Nursing Education (CNE)credits
- Competency Scenarios applying ESC assessments to video simulations
- Staff competency consultation
- Parent or Caregiver electronic care diary, non-pharmacologic care video educational content and ESC recommendation progress reports
- Nurse Bedside entry for ESC assessments and Parent Education, enabling shared-decision making support.
The program is primarily targeted at hospitals and nurse clinicians seeking to improve care for infants prenatally exposed to substances. Individual nurses or caregivers are welcome to take the course.
About Managed Health Connections, LLC
Founded in 2017, Managed Health Connections develops digital health solutions primarily related to addictions and substance use. A recipient of multiple NIH Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) awards, Managed Health Connections is currently developing additional health related education programs and a digital therapeutic approach to Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) utilizing contingency management collaboration with Washington State University.
http://www.managedhealthconnections.com