Healthy Tomorrow

In 2018, McMillen Health conducted a community needs assessment called In Her Words to find out how we could contribute to solving the opioid epidemic. We had honest and eye-opening conversations with women who have opioid use disorder (OUD) and who were pregnant or had recently had a baby. We also talked to professionals serving women with OUD and their babies born with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS).

What we discovered: accessible educational resources are critically needed and virtually non-existent.

Women overwhelmingly asked for educational content in video format (no more brochures to toss out!) that they could easily access from their phones. These findings were the inspiration needed to develop Healthy Tomorrow, a mobile app with educational videos geared towards pregnant, or recently pregnant, women. The Healthy Tomorrow app is a five-year project, with the first year of development focusing on women with OUD and their babies with NAS. Over the next four years, additional video content will be developed focusing on prenatal health, safe sleep, tobacco use during pregnancy, nutrition and breastfeeding. App users can earn rewards for viewing videos and answering a few questions.

Some of the topics covered in the app:

• Caring for yourself and your baby during pregnancy
• What to expect at the hospital
• What to know after taking your baby home
• How to build a support network
• The importance of staying in treatment for OUD
• Your mental health during and after pregnancy

Updates to the app coming soon:

• A portal for professionals to review their client’s progress in the app
• A virtual community forum for women to support each other through pregnancy, postpartum, and recovery

Special Thanks!

Thank you to The St. Joseph Community Health Foundation; PHP Foundation; Dr. Louis and Anne B. Schneider Foundation; English-Bonter-Mitchell Foundation; and the Delta Dental Foundation of Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, and North Carolina for providing project funding.

A special thank you to the women who generously provided their time and honest feedback on project materials as a part of the Mom’s Advisory Group.

Thank you to the following for the generous allocation of their time and advice as a part of the Professional Advisory Group:

Tom Allman, MA, LMHC, LCAC
Vice President of Addiction Services, Park Center, Inc., an affiliate of Parkview Health

Liz Andrews-Murray, MSW, LSW
Manager of Peer Recovery Services, Parkview Health

Tiann Aughinbaugh
WIC Director, Neighborhood Health

Amy Cook
Director of Program Development, Phoenix Associates, Inc.

Michelle DeArmond, RN, BS, IBCLC
“Lactation & Mood Changes and Moms” Nurse, Lutheran Hospital

Antoinette Francher-Donald
Children’s Health Collaborative Director, Community Foundation of Greater Fort Wayne

Tony GiaQuinta, MD
Pediatrician, Parkview Physicians Group Pediatrics

Mary Ann Gore
Early Start Health Coordinator, Brightpoint Head Start

Carolyn Warner-Greer, MD
Physician, Bowen Recovery Center

Melyssa Manchester
Area Manager, CleanSlate Centers

Jennifer Norris-Hale, PMH-C
Founder, Mission: Motherhood

Erin Norton, RN, BSN, MBA
Community Outreach Director, Parkview Women’s & Children’s Service Line

Stasia Roth
Executive Director, A Mother’s Hope

Holli Seabury, EdD
Executive Director, Delta Dental Foundation of Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, and North Carolina

Glenis Sundberg, LMFT
Maternal Mental Health Director, Healthier Moms and Babies

Sarah Turner, MD
Family Medicine Specialist, Lutheran Health Physicians

Paige Wilkins, MSOL, CFRM
Executive Director, Healthier Moms and Babies