International Adoption Medicine

If you are considering international adoption, the emotional and physical health of available children is sure to be one of first questions raised. Conditions in institutions and the level of care provided vary widely from country to country and even within a country. And if there are health problems, they can range from those easily treatable if diagnosed early to more serious conditions requiring extended or lifetime care plans.

Your agency or facilitator should be able to provide you with up-to-date information about the institutions it works with and known medical issues in the individual country, but what about your child?

In 2003, there were over 20,000 international adoptions by U.S. residents.

Due to the distance, and regulations covering adoption from abroad, your initial introduction to your child may be handled by long distance communication: through medical reports from local doctors accompanied by photos or a video.

According to Dr. Eric Downing of the Russian Adoption Medical Services in Moscow, physicians in other countries may be trained differently, diagnose differently, and treat differently than U.S.-trained physicians, which can lead to misunderstandings. Medical reports can appear misleading, with the result that adopting parents may not be prepared with an appropriate support system in place after the adoption is completed.

The Evaluation Center for Adoption at Schneider Children's Hospital also notes that socioeconomic and language differences can make assessments of medical reports more difficult.

This is where adoption medicine comes in.

Adoption Medicine

In 1992, 6,472 children were adopted internationally. In 2002, that number jumped to 20,009. To meet this enormous growth, "adoption medicine" is becoming a more sought-after and widely practiced medical specialty.

These physicians, with experience in international adoption, can undertake a pre-adoption assessment of the medical reports and videos/photographs (if the quality is good). They are located here in the U.S. or, like Dr. Downing in Moscow, in the country of interest. Additionally, many can evaluate your child after your return home to ensure that nothing has been overlooked.

Best Resources:

Medical Evaluation Specialists
Clinics and individual specialists in the U.S. and abroad providing pre- and post-adoption services including evaluations, assessments, treatment, and referral.

Learn More:

"Adoption Medicine - Healing The Wounds" - A report from CNN on the growth of adoption medicine.
Parents of Kids with Infectious Diseases (PKIDS) - an information and support resource for families of kids with viral hepatitis, HIV/AIDS or other diseases, includes a Q&A forum with some of the top medical experts in the U.S.

Comments

There is really a need for physicians who know more about international adoptions and the health issues that children adopted from other countries may have. Children adopted internationally may have health issues that are not expected or usually seen in children in the United States. This is why you need to see a physician who understands the special needs of adopted children. There are language issues too that may need attention as well as other physical, attachment, or learning issues that can only be seen by someone who is very experienced with them.

Posted by: conservation at 12/06/2005 04:09 PM

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