eLetters to:

ELECTRONIC ARTICLE: Laurie C. Miller and Nancy W. Hendrie Health of Children Adopted From China Pediatrics 2000; 105: e76 [Abstract] [Full text] [PDF]

eLetters published:

visiting orphanages

Nina Stephenson   (14 August 2000)

Re: adoption from China

Agnes Horowitz   (2 December 2000)

clinical studies as catalysts for change

L A Corsi   (28 December 2000)

visiting orphanages 14 August 2000
Nina Stephenson, academic librarian University of New Mexico Send letter to journal: Re: visiting orphanages nstephen{at}unm.edu Nina Stephenson	My comment is very brief. The authors state that adoptive parents are no longer able to visit orphanages. This is not true. In many cases, families still visit the orphanages to receive their babies. In June of 1998 I visited my daughter's orphanage in the Fujian province. While we weren't given a tour, it was possible to peek into some of the rooms to get a general impression of the conditions of orphanage life.
Re: adoption from China 2 December 2000
Agnes Horowitz, mother of 2; enrolled in Masters program for speech pathology, Teachers College, NYC Send letter to journal: Re: Re: adoption from China horowitz4{at}juno.com Agnes Horowitz	We adopted from China, Nanchang in Jiangxi Province in 1996. Our daughter was then 21 months old. Upon return to US she tested at 6-9 months level in all areas of development. She has just turned 4. She tested over 99% in the Stanford-Binet intelligence test for verbal scores, and 94% overall. All of her delays are gone except some mild issues having to do with going down staircases, i.e. balance/coordination. Her speech is clearer than most native born children, she is well adjusted, totally bonded and happy. I am worried about these type of studies lest they discourage foreign adoption. One has to go on a case by case basis and not generalize. If we had read such a study before adopting, along with other studies about other issues having to do with brain develoment and bonding, one-on-one care, eye contact, etc., we would never have adopted. Adoption is a leap of faith, but so is having a biological child. We have one, and fortunately he is healthy and wonderful. But there are no guarantees in biological offspring either, despite optimal genes, maternal health, etc. On behalf of all the adoptable children out there, I caution publication of such clinical statistics. In the case of China, for those very concerned about health and other issues, working with an excellent agency who has a doctor on site to monitor the children before adoption is the best answer. None of these statistics are ultimately relevant.
clinical studies as catalysts for change 28 December 2000
L A Corsi, Attorney/therapist Send letter to journal: Re: clinical studies as catalysts for change lacorsi{at}aol.com L A Corsi	as an two time adoptive parent(1995 and pending 2001), i am deeply appreciative for this study and for any and all objective measures and data that can assist us in providing the greatest degree of understanding and care for our children. To discourage these studies is to me, to discourage change, improvement in the quality of care, early intervention work and increased communication and assistance to the children's welfare institutes in china. It is critical to offer these studies in a positive manner to increase funding for early intervention services, establishing an accurate baseline/database of each child's growth and medical record...and providing resources to prevent and treat some simple, yet obviously statistically relevant medical conditions that continue to affect our children. To be fearful that this study or any other one would scare off prospective parents or insult adoption officials saddens me. If information is reported with objectivity, reliability and with a lack of judgment, I welcome the opportunity to have it. One point for the authors: I would truly be interested in seeing an extended dialogue that is solution based, e.g. how to impact and change these areas of health concerns, e.g., what could we do to design and implement a protocol for use in chinese orphanages to help alleviate these conditions, provide assistance, resources etc. Also,it appears clear from this article that one of the main areas of focus and dialogue with chinese officials should be to offer any and all assistance to expedite the placement of children. The almost twofold leap in delays found in the 3-6 month old group and 6-9 month old group says volumes. A number of us are working on an early intervention and wellness pilot program for use in Shanghai. I would greatly appreciate any useful information that could be offered that affect the issues addressed in this most useful article. My thanks and appreciation for the significant contributions these authors continue to make in the area of international adoption.