Care of the pregnant drug addict

This is how many mothers cope with the situation, especially those who fear that social workers will remove their babies, as many do.They conceal their drug-taking throughout pregnancy, probably with husband or boy friend smuggling drugs into the lying-in ward.As a pro fession we should feel ashamed that mothers have so little confidence in us and so much fear.The lack of confidence comes partly from the fact that the addict knows immedi ately if the doctor is ignorant about drug use.and many doctors are.The fear comes from the press, the attitude of so many professional carers, and the fact that many babies have been taken away in the past.An important subject omitted by Dr Riley is injection.Almost everyone who is heavily addicted to opiates injects.Giving up injecting is as difficult as giving up the drugs themselves, whether in pregnancy or otherwise.What does the caring doctor do about that?Many of the 'good girls' apparently reducing on their daily dose of liquid oral methadone are in fact injecting on the side, often in 'secret'