Cherry Harnott and Rosemary Robertson describe their findings during the surveillance of 35 children from overseas who entered Hampshire for the purpose of adoption between 1990 and 1995. This article emphasises the importance of screening the health and development of these children given the high number of unsuspected medical problems found, many of which were significant. It also identifies a number of key issues for adoption agencies to consider when preparing and assessing applicants for intercountry adoption, and the importance of a multi-disciplinary approach in helping to support the adopters in their task of caring for the child.
CarstensC.JuliáM., ‘Legal policy practice issues for intercountry adoptions in the United States’, Adoption & Fostering19:4, pp 26–33, 1995.
2.
ColomboM.De la ParraA.LopezI., ‘Intellectual and physical outcome of children undernourished in early life is influenced by later environmental conditions’, Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology34, pp 611–22, 1992.
3.
EganD.IllingworthR.MacKeithR., Developmental Screening 0–5 Years, London/Philadelphia: Heinemann/J B Lippincott, 1969.
4.
GroothuesC.BeckettC.O'ConnorT., ‘The outcome of adoptions from Romania: Predictors of parental satisfaction’, Adoption & Fostering22:4, pp 30–40, 1998/99.
5.
HostetterM.IversonS.DoleK.JohnsonD., ‘Unsuspected infections, diseases and other medical diagnoses in the evaluation of internationally adopted children’, Paediatrics83:4, pp 559–63, 1989.
6.
HostetterM.JohnsonD., ‘International adoption: An introduction for physicians’, American Journal of Diseases for Children143, pp 325–32, March 1989.
7.
JenistaJ.ChapmanD., ‘Medical problems of foreign-born adopted children’, American Journal of Diseases for Children141, pp 298–302, March 1987.
8.
JohnsonD. E.MillerL. C.IversonS.ThomasW.FranchinoB.DoleK.KiernanM. T.GeorgieffM. K.HostetterM. K., ‘The health of children adopted from Romania’, Journal of American Medical Association268:24, pp 3446–451, 1992.
9.
KalerS.FreemanB. J., ‘Analysis of environmental deprivation: Cognitive and social development in Romanian orphans’, Journal of Child Psychology & Psychiatry35, pp 769–81, 1994.
10.
MillerL.KiernanM. T.GitelmanM. Klein, ‘Developmental and nutritional status of internationally adopted children’, Archives of Paediatric Adolescent Medicine149, pp 40–44, 1995.
11.
RutterM. and the ERA study team, ‘Development catch-up and deficit, following adoption after severe global early deprivation’, Journal of Child Psychology & Psychiatry39:4, pp 465–76, 1998.
12.
SaetersdalB.DalenM., ‘Norway: Intercountry adoption in a homogenous country’, in AlsteinH.SimonR. (eds), Intercountry Adoption: A multinational perspective, New York: Praeger, 1991.
13.
SheridanM., Children's Developmental Progress from Birth to Five Years: The Stycar sequences, Windsor: NFER Publishing Co, 1973.
14.
TriseliotisJ.ShiremanJ.HundlebyJ., Adoption Theory, Policy and Practice, London: Cassell, 1997.
15.
WinickM.MeyerK. K.HarrisR. C., ‘Malnutrition and environmental enrichment by early adoption: Development of adopted Korean children differing greatly in early nutritional status is examined’, Science190, pp 1173–75, 1975.
