Medical Needs

Gladney Center for Adoption: “How We Decided Which Special Needs Boxes to Check on Our Preference Checklist”

This article by an adoptive mother talks about considerations that go into the preference checklist adoptive parents complete. She gives advice on how to not feel overwhelmed while approaching this initial list in sections.

Medical Needs

Utah’s Adoption Connection: Children with Special Needs

This is digital Lending Library allows prospective adoptive families, foster parents, and adoptive parents to rent books for free. Users can check out up to three items at a time for up to six weeks. Within the Children with Special Needs category there are further categories focused on specific special needs, as well as other categories on general adoption, children’s titles, for parenting, for professionals, and LBGTQ focus.

Medical Needs

No Hands But Ours

No Hands But Ours focuses on the children currently being abandoned in China with special medical needs. The organization contains resources for those in the process of adopting a child from China, already home with their adopted child, or just researching special needs. It was founded and is maintained by adoptive parents that specifically focus on special needs adoption from China. The website comprises information regarding specific special needs, family stories, resources (such as before travel and the first year at home) and also opportunities to connect locally and virtually.

Medical Needs

Love Without Boundaries: “Adopting a Child With Special Needs”

Love Without Boundaries’s website contains reference information about common special needs including craniofacial conditions, digestive system conditions, infectious diseases, and more. On the website there is also a family stories page, a resource page (extra packed with info with more information on medical resources and post adoption resources), and a page for the adoption process.

Medical Needs

Gladney Center for Adoption: “Adopting a Child With Special Needs and Disabilities”

This article discusses considerations potential parents must evaluate prior to adopting a child with special needs and/or disabilities. Subsections include understanding children with special needs and disabilities, what must be done before adopting a child with special needs, choosing an adoption agency, and more.

Trainings

Gladney Center for Adoption: “Why Are Foster Care and Adoption Training Required?”

This article explains why foster care and adoption training is required. It discusses pre-service training, foster parent in-service training, post-adoption training, kinship-specific training, and more. The author also provides general advice about learning through parenting experience and how it is a journey.

Trainings

Adoption Training Online

From the Children’s Aid Society of Alabama, several paid trainings are offered. There are Hague approved bundles. Trainings are various- spanning from domestic adoption, medical courses, and mental health

America World Adoption: “Adoption Training”

America World Adoption is a Christian adoption agency offering ‘Anchored in Hope: Strengthening Adoptive Families’ which is designed to help families prepare for the placement of a child and to equip them to meet the unique needs of their child in a 10 hour curriculum. They also offer courses for preparing for after adoption with shorter training around 1 ½ hours. AWAA’s other resources include webinars and individual appointments.

Trainings

Holt International: “Parenting Adoptees”

Holt International is a Christian organization that offers programs including Post-Adoption Coaching & Education (PACE) and Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI). Both programs help parents to work with their children. Holt also provides resources on racial and adoptee identity, birth parents, and privilege and international adoption. All of these sections have links and videos designed to help parents understand their child.

Trainings

Child Welfare Information Gateway: “Preadoption Training”

“Different types of adoption training are available to help prospective and adoptive parents learn more about the different aspects of adoption. The Child Welfare Information Gateway has compiled a list of different trainings that may be required and are useful for parents looking to understand more about their child and their development. “

Resources