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Review
. 2023 Aug;27(8):1361-1369.
doi: 10.1007/s10995-023-03679-4. Epub 2023 Jun 1.

Impact of an Asynchronous Training for the Early Intervention and Childcare Workforce Addressing the Developmental Impact of the Opioid Crisis on Young Children

Michelle E Roley-Roberts  1   2 , Hanein Edrees  3 , Jessy Thomas  4 , Steph Weber  3 , Riane Ramsey  4 , Jennifer Walton  4 , Andrea Witwer  4
Affiliations
Review

Impact of an Asynchronous Training for the Early Intervention and Childcare Workforce Addressing the Developmental Impact of the Opioid Crisis on Young Children

Michelle E Roley-Roberts et al. Matern Child Health J. 2023 Aug.

Abstract

Objectives: The US opioid epidemic contributes to a growing population of children experiencing neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). A review of the developmental impacts of the opioid crisis highlights that both prenatal exposure to teratogens and ACEs can result in developmental delay and disabilities. Training for the early intervention/early childhood (EI) systems is needed to enable them to meet the needs of this growing population.

Methods: To address this, an IRB-approved online training on best practices for NAS, developmental monitoring and referral, and trauma-informed care was created for Ohio EI providers who provided informed consent to participate. The feasibility of utilizing an online training was assessed. Knowledge on opioid addiction, NAS, ACEs, and early intervention provider characteristics were collected for 2973 participants.

Results: Within 6 months, the training reached providers in all Ohio counties and seventeen other states. 57% of providers reported caring for one or more children with a caregiver who has confirmed opioid use. 31% reported these children had experienced four or more ACEs. Providers' ACEs awareness was moderately associated with their experiences with prenatally-exposed youth. There was a significant increase in knowledge following training. Differences in post-training knowledge differed only by county-level opioid death rates, where those providers with low-medium opioid death rates reported more awareness of children with prenatal opioid exposure compared to participants who lived in a county with medium and medium-high opioid death rates.

Conclusions: Online-training is feasible for closing gaps in the early intervention system.

Keywords: Developmental disabilities; Early childhood workforce; Online asynchronous training; Opioid in utero exposure; Traumatic stress.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Ohio participant representation by opioid overdose death rate. Figure of the percentage of participants from Ohio by the opioid overdose death rate in the county. Illustrates that most participants were coming from areas where there was a high need for information on the impact of opioid in utero exposure on young children
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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