Positive Steps for Families in Crisis and Those Heading That Way
Correct diagnosis of the problem or problems creating the crisis Joan adopted her nephew, Diego, at age 3 when her sister died of a drug overdose. The birthfather is "unknown." Diego was described as a high-risk child due to lack of prenatal care, low Apgar scores at birth, and multiple caregivers in the first two years of life (in and out of foster care.) The social worker described him as a healthy pre-schooler with mild developmental delays and high risk factors. Before placing him with Joan, he took Diego to a Children's Clinic where a team of medical doctors, psychologists, psychometrists, educators, and therapists evaluated him in all areas. Diego was diagnosed as environmentally neglected, developmentally delayed in several areas including cognitive and speech, possibly learning disabled, and showing signs of "insecure attachment." Every adopted child who has special needs or risk factors should undergo a comprehensive evaluation by a team of professionals prior to or shortly after adoption. No parent can hope to be able to make a complete diagnosis alone. A team approach is considered the best way to formulate a complete diagnosis because no one professional specializes in all areas of child development.
These team approach evaluations (sometimes called "psych evals") can cost hundreds of dollars, but are often covered by Medicaid (which most adopted children with special needs qualify for, regardless of adoptive parent income). In cases where there is no Medicaid or private insurance coverage, the adoption agency will often pay for the tests. It is quickly becoming standard procedure to provide all adoptive parents with a recent psych eval prior to adoption.
Having a complete diagnosis rarely discourages the potential adoptive parent or parents from attempting the placement. In fact, the opposite is true. By knowing what to expect, many adoptive parents find they are more confident about taking the child into their home. This type of full disclosure is good for the child and for the whole family.
Next Page: Professional Involvement © Rita Laws and Nancy Ashe. All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced in any form without written consent.
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