Claim they weren’t adequately informed by adoption agency

From the New York Times:

A couple from Virginia Beach is suing Bethany Christian Services, an adoption agency, seeking compensation for the care of their Russian adoptive son, Roman. Chip and Julie Harshaw claim the agency misled them about Roman’s condition, describing him as “a beautiful, healthy, on-target, blond-haired boy.”

After repeated bouts of hyperactivity and aggression, the boy was diagnosed with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, brain damage and neuropsychiatric problems, with an IQ of 53. He was placed in an institution, and one of his doctors said he is not expected to ever live independently.

The Harshaws are among a growing number of parents who have made complaints against adoption agencies in recent years, claiming that they were not adequately informed about their children before adopting them. The Harshaws say they told the agency they could care only for a child with minimal health problems and a “good prognosis for normal development,” and would not have adopted their son if they had known the extent of his impairments. Bethany disputes most of their claims.

See also:

Fetal alcohol syndrome suspected in ‘returned’ adoption– Boston Herald

Fetal alcohol disorders common in Eastern European adoptees — Reuters

Adopted boy’s return highlights problems in Russian orphanages — Washington Post

Adoptive parents take on more than a child — National Public Radio

Russian adoptees get a respite on the range — New York Times

Writing in the New York Times’ Room for Debate blog, law professor David Smolin says the case of the boy who was sent back to Russia by his adoptive mother highlights the risks inherent in foreign adoptions. Many of these children, he says, have serious psychological, behavioral, cognitive and educational issues, the legacy of traumatic backgrounds or neglectful institutions. An excerpt:

… too many prospective adoptive parents, even when warned about hypothetical possible problems, are asked to make a purportedly permanent adoption decision based on inadequate or misleading information about the particular child with whom they are matched. Too many prospective adoptive parents are matched with children whose behaviors, issues and needs are far beyond the capacity of a normal family to manage.

Smolin is a professor at the Cumberland Law School at the Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama.

Says authorities failed to disclose ‘psychopathic issues/behaviors’

From the [UK] Daily Mail, AP/Washington Post, [UK] Telegraph:

Russia’s foreign minister is urging an end to all U.S. adoptions after a a seven-year-old Siberian boy adopted by an American family was sent back to Moscow alone because his U.S. mother didn’t want him any more.

The adoptive mother, Torry-Ann Hansen of Tennessee, said in a letter to authorities that the boy “is violent and has severe psychopathic issues/behaviors.” She claimed that the Russian orphanage staff had lied about his “mental stability” in order to “get him out of their orphanage”.

The Russians angrily denied this, saying he was stubborn but that his only disability was that he was ‘flat-footed’.

Related posts:

• Higher rates of learning disabilities among adopted children — Houston Chronicle
• Adopted youths more likely to have mental disorders — Chicago Tribune

Michael Arrington, writing in TechCrunch.com via the Washington Post, reports that comedian Sarah Silverman has agreed to donate her time to a Los Angeles-area fundraiser to benefit people with Down syndrome.

Proceeds from the March 6 benefit in Culver City, called TwentyWonder, will go to the Down Syndrome Association of Los Angeles.

Silverman stirred controversy last week when she appeared before an international audience at the exclusive TED conference and cracked jokes referencing the current debate about the use of the word “retard.” Here’s how CNN described her routine:

In front of an audience of Nobel laureates, mathematicians, artists, scientists and inventors, Silverman did not hold back on her edgy brand of comedy.

After talking about the merits of adoption and the problem of overpopulation, Silverman joked on stage that she wants to adopt a “retarded” child with a terminal disease.

[Note: A writer on Salon.com said the term Silverman used was "terminally ill retard."]

That would earn her sympathy points, she said. But, because the child would die soon, she said she wouldn’t have to be stuck with the burden for too long.

In a video on the CNN site, Silverman explains her approach to comedy and says there is one category of humor that strikes her as offensive and unfair.

“I don’t really care for like fat jokes about women, specifically,” she said.

“Because I feel that we live in a society where fat men deserve love, and fat women do not deserve love — at least in white America. And so I feel like that’s an ugly thing, and it doesn’t make me laugh.”

In response to questions about Silverman’s upcoming appearance at TwentyWonder, DSALA board president Gina Vivona sent out the attached response. An excerpt:

It is DSALA’s position that we will treat people like we wish to be treated; with acceptance, respect, and understanding. Within those guiding principles, our goal is to extend the reach of our community by building relationships, providing education and increased awareness whenever possible.

There are many ways to be heard. One is to show people who don’t understand just how amazing our community members with Down syndrome are.

(Image from CNN video)

Landmark research offers recommendations for delivering the news, either prenatally or after baby’s birth

Parents’ preference: Don’t say ‘I’m sorry’

In a historic first, two leading professional journals this week published research advising doctors on how to deliver a diagnosis of Down syndrome, either prenatally or after a baby is born.

Advocates and physicians have been calling for guidance on delivering diagnoses ever since the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) recommended in 2007 that obstetricians offer prenatal screening and testing for Down syndrome to all pregnant women, regardless of age.

The 2007 ACOG recommendations were not accompanied by any assistance to doctors in delivering diagnoses, and many doctors have reported in survey research that they haven’t gotten professional training about individuals with intellectual disabilities, or about prenatal diagnosis or counseling expectant parents.

In publications released online, the journals Pediatrics and the American Journal of Medical Genetics provided guidelines prepared by a 29-member team of doctors, genetic counselors and other health care professionals from around the country. The recommendations were synthesized from a review of parent surveys and research over the past five decades, and incorporate the views of mothers who had received Down syndrome diagnoses. In many cases, these parents said they felt the information that was provided to them was inaccurate, incomplete, or delivered in a manner that was offensive and damaging.

Whether they had received the news prenatally or after the birth of a child, parents agreed that they preferred to get the diagnosis together, from a knowledgeable professional, and that they be provided with up-to-date information about Down syndrome, its causes, and the prospects for a child living with Down syndrome today.

Parents asked that physicians use sensitive and nonjudgmental language, and avoid sharing unsolicited personal opinions. They asked particularly that doctors avoid saying “I’m sorry,” or “Unfortunately, I have some bad news to share.”

(more…)

Rosemary Black writes in the New York Daily News that celebrity couple Katherine Heigl and Josh Kelley are among a growing number of parents who choose to adopt children with disabilities rather than wait for a healthy baby. Their 10-month-old daughter Naleigh was born in South Korea.

Cory Barron, foundation director at the St. Louis-based Children’s Hope International adoption agency, says that this year so far, 62 percent of the children placed by that agency have special needs, as compared to 13 percent in 2005. It’s due, he says, to the fact that the wait for healthy children grows ever longer.

… While it can seem like a wonderful idea to give a home to a special needs child, experts warn that it’s not a decision to make lightly. Some of the children’s medical issues, like  heart disease and cerebral palsy, can require lifelong care and drain a family’s financial and emotional resources.

Related stories here and here.

(AP photo/New York Daily News)

Appearing on The Ellen Degeneres Show, actress Katherine Heigl announced that she and husband Josh Kelley are adopting a baby girl with disabilities from Korea. With video.

“She has special needs. She’s a special needs baby, and because of that things all moved so much faster,” Heigl said. “You know, they wanted to get her to us as quickly as possible.”

(Photo from website of The Ellen Degeneres Show)