The Process

In an earlier post this week I said I'd continue with more things I learned from our caseworker.  Here goes...

When one of the orphanages that our agency is contracted with has a child available for adoption, they contact our agency.  Our agency, Gladney, then begins the matching process of child to available family.  They start gathering medical and background information.  The process is different for abandonment cases vs relinquishment cases.  The abandonment cases have a police report from where/when the child is picked up.  A name is given and birth date is estimated.  Natalie told me that they see pretty equal numbers of abandonment and relinquishment cases. 

Then this child is moved to one of the Gladney Foster Care Centers. These centers are much better, I am told, than the orphanages.  Gladney staffs the centers and for the infants the caregiver ration is 3 babies/1 caregiver.  Gladney provides the food plus nurses and pediatricians on staff.  FYI - the children are tested multiple times for HIV, Hep A & B, and syphilis. We have also chosen to pay extra for some extra HIV testing. 

Next a family is given the referral of this child that matches their preference profile.  In the referral you receive: daily routines of the child, measurements, pictures, descriptions, medical info, test results, and any other pertinent information.  The family has 2 weeks to decide whether they want to accept or decline this referral.  It is rare that the given birth date is the actual true date.  Many times once the child gets to the foster care center and begins receiving better nutrition then there are already growth improvements. 

After a family accepts a referral then Gladney starts working on a court date.  It usually takes 8-10 weeks to get this set.  A travel packet is also then sent out with all the necessary information. 

Common medical conditions that children have when you bring them home include respiratory illnesses, pneumonia, asthma, parasites, skin infections, malnutrition, and delayed development or stunted growth.  Many times good nutrition, lots of love, and some doctor visits can get them fixed up quickly. 

Our first trip to Ethiopia will primarily be to go meet our potential child and spend time with him at the foster care center.  Natalie said we could probably stay for about an hour on 2-3 different occasions.  Also we will appear in court.  We will also attend some cultural events.

After the child is legally ours then we will return home and wait for an appointment at the US Embassy in Ethiopia to return for our exit interview and visa.  The second trip is lower key and our child is with us the whole trip.  We get to do sightseeing and cultural events also.  We return home and he is HOME for good!