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Chapter 25: Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (the only chapter I have completely finished so far) goes through fetal development by trimester and the effects that alcohol can have at various developmental stages. The chapter starts with an anecdote: Stacey and Tom, in the delivery room ecstatic about the eminent arrival of their first born. But before the doctor gives Stacey the reassuring thumbs up he pauses at the text book facial features of a newborn with FAS: thin upper lip, small, widely set eyes. “This little guy seems to have some problems,” and so it begins. A lifetime of doctors, medications, teacher meetings and special education await Stacey and Tom – all the result of a weekend binge before she knew she was pregnant.

From there the chapter reads like a bibliography of fetal and neurological scientific research. Dr. Herten cites a broad spectrum of journal articles from Pediatrics to the The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse all published after 2005. The result is a very convincing, if not overly technical, argument that drinking during pregnancy, even small amounts, has the potential to be very damaging to the developing fetus.

If nothing else, Dr. Herten’s chapter on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is an excellent scholarly review of the latest (2006-2010) in alcohol related fetal development research. Definitely an important resource to have on the shelf for anyone who works in substance use prevention and/or perinatal health. While some of his stories allude to a much different time in perinatal medicine – Stacey and Tom’s delivery doctor “held the infant by the legs, spanked him on the buttocks to produce a hoarse cry” – the message is very relevant today: the effects of drinking alcohol during pregnancy are devastating.

Excerpt:

“FAS and the more subtle alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorders (ARND) are the tragic, shameful secrets of a society that does not recognize that alcohol is a real hazard. First described in 1968 by Lemoine in France, FAS has been the subject of intense research during the last decade (Miller)… For every child with clinically apparent FAS, there are many more children with learning disabilities, behavior problems, hyperactivity, and attention deficit directly related to maternal alcohol use (Mayoch).”

It is great to have an expert with such a passionate and compelling voice locally here in San Luis Obispo. Check out Jeff Herten’s blog or buy his book.

Dr. Kathryn Page writes, trains, advocates and consults on neurodevelopmental issues, primarily Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD).  She is currently a trainer for the UC Davis Human Services Academy, the mental health coordinator at an agency serving Latinos in Marin County, a consultant for the State of California on FASD-related projects, and a member of the NIAAA Interagency Coordinating Council on FASD.  She received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the Center for Psychological Studies in Berkeley and did her internship in the Stanford University Psychiatry Department, specializing in alcohol and drug treatment. Kathy has previously worked as bilingual school psychologist, served on the juvenile drug treatment court team in Santa Clara County as the disabilities consultant, and was the educational disabilities coordinator at that county’s juvenile hall. She co-founded the California State FASD Task Force and was clinical director of two FASD diagnostic clinics.

More information - Biographical Sketch 

Article:  The invisible havoc of prenatal alcohol damage

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Back at my computer after a long holiday with family and.. well, mostly family, I am re-energized as I pore over the notes and bits of inspiration that came bursting out of our December retreat. Community Action Partnership provided a great space for us to come together, new faces and old, to re-examine why we do what we do and how we do it.

picture from: www.plu.edu/~carlsokl/collaboration/home.html

Why do we do it? Well, we have a lot of exciting work to do in 2010. The 4Ps Plus (perinatal substance use screening) report provided by Public Health tells us that our work is not done. Women continue to drink alcohol and use during pregnancy in our county AND there is still a lot of misinformation out there about how much is safe to drink. The truth: No one knows. The science is not there to guide us to a ‘safe’ level of alcohol or other substance use for a developing fetus. So that is why we say, “No alcohol during pregnancy.” And we will continue to say that in as many creative ways as possible so that no more children have to suffer and no more mothers have to worry that they harmed their child simply because they didn’t know.

On that note, the retreat teased out a lot of really exciting ideas and directions for Beginnings and NineZeroSLO which we will add to and refine at our next Beginnings meeting in February. I hope this update finds you all well and rested and ready for a new decade. Please find a re-cap of the 2009 Retreat and a calendar (click to download) of 2010 meetings below. See you in February!

2010 Beginnings Meeting Calendar

Beginnings Collaboration & Planning Retreat 2009     

Highlights of the Retreat:

• Hearing from our partner agencies (Public Health, ALPHA, & Martha’s Place) about the work they are doing to prevent Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder in our community
• Building collaboration activity: What did you look like when you were in high school? How are teens today different?
• Work group plans for 2010: A lot of really great ideas came out of these break out groups, but they did not have enough time. We will continue more of this discussion at our February Beginnings meeting.

Download pdf’s of some of the presentations below. Not all are currently available, but check back soon!

Retreat Introduction: Purpose of retreat, Why do we collaborate?

Beginnings Mission & Vision

4Ps+ Update – Marilynn McDermott, County Public Health

Beginnings Curriculum Update – Julissa Dyer, Program Associate ALPHA (not yet available)

Martha’s Place Program Update – Nisha Abdul Cader, Anne Marshall & Dot Stauble Martha’s Place (not yet available)

December 11, 2009

9am-2pm

CAPSLO Conference Room 1030 Southwood Drive

All Beginnings members and friends are strongly encouraged to attend this half-day session meant to strengthen our partnerships and set priorities for 2010. More information to follow.

Web-cast on Serving Substance Exposed Newborns

training Collaborative Approaches to Identifying and Serving Substance Exposed Newborns: Lessons From Four Demonstration Projects

Beginnings Steering Committee: November Meeting Minutes

The Steering Committee met the first week of November to discuss the Beginnings budget, revise the Mission and Vision, and begin planning for the December 11th Beginnings meeting.

New Beginnings Ad

Now showing at the Downtown Centre and Fremont movie theaters!