Cutting-Edge Practice

Enhearten Recovery App

State/Jurisdiction: National
Setting: Virtual
Population: Women & Maternal
Topic Area: Safe and Connected Communities Mental Health & Substance Use Birth Outcomes
NPMs:

Enhearten addresses critical challenges in supporting pregnant and postpartum women (PPW) with substance use disorder (SUD), a population facing rising overdose rates and significant health risks. For example, maternal mortality among women with SUD is four times higher than the general population, with the postpartum period being particularly high-risk for drug-related deaths. Despite the existence of important recovery supports, such as therapy, hospitals, and treatment programs, there are many gaps in between, leaving individuals without consistent support throughout their journey. Enhearten was created to fill those gaps, providing a continuous, technology-driven supplement to in-person support systems, rather than replacing them.
A major challenge to recovery for PPW with SUD is stigma, which negatively impacts mental health, increases relapse risk, and creates obstacles to seeking care. Stigma is especially harmful during pregnancy and early parenthood. For example, parents with substance use disorders are 49% more likely to experience stigma than non-parents, further isolating them from critical resources. Enhearten recognized the need to address stigma as a core focus and focused on PPI as the population that would benefit most from targeted, stigma-reducing interventions.
The Enhearten recovery app helps people by checking in with them regularly, identifying how stigma is affecting them in the moment, and providing tailored resources to address those feelings. It also offers a private, supportive peer community, and educational content, ensuring individuals have continuous access to encouragement and guidance. By reducing self-stigma, the app can help improve overall recovery outcomes, making it easier for PPW with SUD to stay engaged in their recovery.
Beyond individual support, Enhearten facilitates the work of behavioral health partners, including healthcare providers, addiction treatment centers, recovery community organizations, and local governments.

The Perinatal Substance Use Disorder Implementation & Policy Hub project is supported by the Foundation for Opioid Response Efforts (FORE) and Perigee Fund. The content presented is the responsibility of the featured practices and policies and does not necessarily reflect the views of FORE, Perigee Fund, or AMCHP.

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CONTACT INFORMATION
Enhearten
Micah Goodman
contact@enhearten.com

Practice Website


For more information about this practice, please email evidence@amchp.org