It is such a blessing for adoptive parents when they finally come home with their child, but the adoption process does not end there. It is important for families to remember that completing post placement reports is a very important step in the adoption process. Post placement reports allow the family to share with the child’s country of birth how the child and family are adjusting and how adoption benefits children. It is very important that these post placement reports are completed accurately and on time so that the U.S. can continue to work internationally to place other children through adoption. Without post placement reports countries are not able to see the progress of the children they have placed through adoption. If they are unable to see the benefit of adoption, countries could shut down or increase the requirements to adopt, making it more difficult for future families and most importantly leave children stranded. This has been seen in countries including Vietnam and Ukraine. Pictures are a required part of post placement reporting but they are also very important. Country officials and adoption workers receiving post placement reports look forward to looking at pictures and seeing how the children from their country are doing in their forever home. Pictures are such a great way to show that a child is happy and is being cared for by a loving family.
MLJ Adoptions staff, Brooke Randolph and Michele L. Jackson, reported that
during their visit to Honduras they talked with the Director and Secretary General of IHNFA about how adoption benefits the child. During this conversation the Secretary General of IHNFA shared that he could see how the child’s eyes shine in the photos and how healthy and happy they look. It’s pretty impressive that the Secretary General of IHNFA is taking the time to look at the photos sent with post placement reports. This is a good indication of just how important pictures are and why they must be included with post placement reports. These pictures can be the extra encouragement to find solutions and make adoption available for more children more quickly.
Every country has different photo requirements. Some countries such as
Democratic Republic of Congo and
Samoa will accept digital photos while others require hard copies mailed. The minimum requirement of photos is also different depending on the country, for example,
Democratic Republic of Congo and
Samoa both require a minimum of five photos while all of our other programs,
Nicaragua,
Honduras and
Bulgaria, require a minimum of ten. More photos are always better because adoption workers and country official enjoy seeing them. Make sure to send pictures of the
child with his or her family doing different activities. While candid shots are cute it is important to see the child with the family. For more information about MLJ Adoptions country program requirements for post placement reports see
here.
For more information about MLJ Adoptions’ international adoption programs, please click here.
MLJ Adoptions is a Non-Profit, Hague-Accredited adoption service provider located in Indianapolis, Indiana, working in Africa, Eastern Europe, Latin America and the Pacific Isles. We are passionate about serving children in need.
