7th European FASD Alliance Conference in Madrid

By canfasdblog on Nov 13, 2024 06:00 am

Ella Huber was a recipient of a CanFASD Travel Award for the 7th European FASD Alliance Conference in Madrid. She offers her experiences of attending and presenting a poster at the conference. Ella is the Knowledge Exchange Lead and a Researcher with the Centre of Excellence for Women’s Health (CEWH). She works closely with CanFASD Prevention Research Lead and CEWH Director, Dr. Nancy Poole, and the Prevention Network Action Team. She was also part of the first cohort to complete the Trainee Program at CanFASD.

In collaboration with my colleagues Dr. Poole and Lindsay Wolfson, I submitted a poster presentation focused on the need for information and support in the preconception period. The poster highlighted the need for health promotion, education, and counselling that goes beyond screening to offer relational and non-judgemental support to reduce alcohol use and other health risks during the preconception period. The poster also highlighted the development of the Thinking About Pregnancy booklet, which was created for those planning a pregnancy to reflect on their alcohol use. The booklet can be used in multiple settings to ground conversations about substance us in the preconception period, and can be offered to women and families to support their pregnancy planning.