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286235
Health and development of institutionalized children in Guatemala: An analysis of adoption policy
Guatemala once had a very strong international adoption relationship with the United States, but in 2008 that relationship ended after discoveries of corruption within the adoption system froze all international adoptions. A new adoption framework was created that only allows for domestic adoption, which is uncommon. Data on Guatemala's new adoption framework was collected through periodicals, human rights reports, legal documents, country-wide statistics, and in-person interviews. A literature review and analyses were conducted for the effects of institutionalization on the health and development of children, and parameters such as age, number of children and caregivers per institution, available resources, and time spent in institutional care were used to compare Guatemala's system with the guidelines suggested by current research. While there are reportedly 5,000 children within Guatemala's system of institutional care, only 273 were placed in adoptive homes within the first three years of the new system. Despite efforts by the National Adoption Council to publicize domestic adoption, few Guatemalan families have shown interest. Such delays mean that children in Guatemala's adoption system are at a greater risk for delays in cognitive development, conditions such as ADHD, reactive attachment disorder, and delays in CNS maturation. Guatemala should follow other countries that have successfully created a safe international adoption system. Although domestic adoption should be prioritized, international adoption should be available for children who cannot be adopted domestically.
Public health or related public policy
Learning Objectives:
Describe factors within institutional settings that can place children at risk for developmental delays
Analyze aspects of Guatemala's current adoption policy that are both beneficial and detrimental to the health of children in its system
Keywords: Adoption, Child and Adolescent Mental Health
Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: As a graduate student at the University of Chicago, I was the sole recipient of a field research grant for this project that was funded by the university in the summer of 2011. I conducted field research in Guatemala and academic research in the United States, and composed and submitted this study as my Master's thesis, which was accepted in April of 2012 and for which I was awarded my M.A. degree.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.