PHOENIX — Jo and Brain Jones are describing the end of their 2019 as, "a little surreal."
That's because their non-profit Jacob's Hope, named after their late adopted son is now caring for their very first baby.
"It's beyond exciting, scary you know to put everything into place that we've been working on for over three years," said Jo Jones, Co-founder and Board President of Jacob's Hope.
Their non-profit now with their inaugural baby, is dedicated to providing a unique set of care to babies that have been exposed to drugs during gestation and are experiencing withdrawal symptoms once born. The baby they're caring for now was born exposed to the prescribed drug methadone.
"Our baby is withdrawing from methadone, a prescribed drug, not a street drug. Mom is very active in his program here she has worked with our staff, in fact two of the nursers are here with her today and teaching her care techniques," said Brian Jones, Executive Director of Jacob's Hope.
According to the Arizona Department of Health Services, more than 8,000 newborns in Arizona are affected by prenatal drug and alcohol exposure every year and almost 800 are born with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome requiring specialized care. Both Brian and Jo know the need for this type of facility, in-fact Jacob's Hope is only the fourth facility in the country specializing in Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome care.
"We are licensed for 12 babies at any given time and even at a constant flow we could help maybe a hundred a year," said Jo Jones.
Babies not at a specialized facility for Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome, would receive care at a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at a hospital but at a place like Jacob's Hope they're able to focus just on Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome.
Both Brian and Jo say they want to provide immediate infant care and send babies home equipped for long term success, all while hopefully creating more facilities to care for babies impacted by prenatal drug and alcohol exposure.
To learn more about Jacob's Hope, CLICK HERE.
