Virtual Training: Perinatal Harm Reduction

In this session, we will discuss what perinatal harm reduction is, and what it is not. We will look at the historical context in which it developed, with particular focus on the experiences of women and people of color. We will discuss harm reduction for tobacco/nicotine as well as practical strategies, interventions and resources.

Joelle Puccio is a registered nurse who has worked in Perinatal and Neonatal Intensive Care since 2004. They are a co-founder of the Academy of Perinatal Harm Reduction, whose mission is to improve the lives of pregnant and parenting people who use substances. They have been invited to speak at conferences convened by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Academy of Neonatal Nurses (ANN), the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), and more. They traveled the country in their RV with their 2 cats as a travel nurse from 2017-2023, in order to learn about the experience of families affected by perinatal substance use and pregnancy criminalization in varying geographic areas. They are now settled in Phoenix Arizona, pursuing their Master of Public Health, working at a specialized facility for infants experiencing withdrawal, and putting down roots in local harm reduction communities. They became passionate about advocating for people who use drugs after realizing that everything they had been taught about drugs from childhood through nursing school was wrong.