Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment

Studies have found that smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol can stunt a baby’s growth in the womb or cause premature birth, lifelong defects or death.

That is why in 2011, the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (SCDHHS) developed Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT), a screening tool for doctors to ask pregnant Medicaid patients about their tobacco use, alcohol and substance use, domestic violence, and mental health.

The aim is to help reduce the state’s infant mortality rate, which is above the national average.

It only takes a few minutes to ask and answer the questions. The goal of the SBIRT test is to get women the help they need to keep their babies healthy.