Being from the pre roe vs wade era, where most adoptions were closed, I gave as much medical information as I possibly could when I surrendered my daughter. Which meant almost nothing as my parents were young and healthy at the time. Most normal medical conditions happen over time, with age, so how is a complete medical history supposed to be given when no medical conditions exist?
When adoptions are closed either from the onset or later on, how is medical information supposed to be updated when some were told to go home and forget about ever having a baby? and others were promised an opened adoption only to have it closed on them?
History has proven that agencies do not always pass along obtained information, which could be helpful to the adoptee. How do you get important information when so many feel it isn't important enough to keep the lines of communication opened or important enough to pass along?
2009-05-26T06:26:27Z
Doodlestuff: Thank you for posting that information about the agency, some do not believe this happens.
durdenslabs2009-05-26T11:03:16Z
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Throughout the years of your childs life you can volunteer more medical information to the agency or state. If they actually care about your child, regardless of whether he/she is adopted or not, they will make sure the info is passed along. My husband was adopted at 2 months of age. No medical info was given to his parents though his birth parents had given the info to the state. When my husband decided to find out more info (after 34 yrs) he contacted the adoption reunion registry and they gave him all the info they had. Deaths, if the death was medical, mothers medical history, what he looked like, who is adoptive parents were for 2 months, stuff like that. So, it IS possible to get the medical information. You just have to know where to go to look for it.
Not only was I not given my parents' family medical history, but I can't get my OWN medical information from the first 6 months of my life. The agency did not tell my parents the name of my pediatrician, and they won't tell me now. I had frequent high fevers during the first year after my adoptive placement, but I have no information on myself before that time.
Most people are recognized as fully human at birth. As an adoptee, I did not achieve personhood until my adoption. I cannot access any information before that time whether it concerns my parents or myself because I was not me. I was some other legal identity with a different set of parents. That me ceased to exist by order of a judge. Somehow, I am viewed as the product of a 'bad adoptive experience' because I believe I have been a single, consistent person since the moment of conception and that I have two identities with two different sets of parents.
I sure wish someone could explain to me how it is that I wasn't me when I was born. I find it all very confusing and quite dehumanizing.
I am pro electronic medical records in general that of course only medical professionals can access. They will follow you no matter the city, state hospital system you are in. There is a small pilot project in my state for this where they are tracking it to see if it effective and going to try to make this nation wide. It is only in a few hospital systems. In something like this as the mother goes to the doctor her medical info will update that will update the adoptee. This way if either party wants to remain anonymous they will There will have to be consents signed by the bio mother to share that info with her children but I think that most will want to. They can update it yearly like they do now.
How do you get the information? You don't. You do like everybody else does - the doctor orders tests if you are sick. Assume that you will get diabetes if you are overweight and heart disease if you don't exercise. You go for screenings. There are many who do not have medical histories of their families who are not adopted. Hardly stops them in their tracks. It is actually very rare that family medical history changes treatment and unfortunately, one of those is breast cancer in a woman under 40. My friend buried her daughter less than a year after she found her because the adoption agency never forwarded the information. They lied and said they would, but their policy was to not send this info. Both the mom and adoptive parents are suing the agency since the agency had the family's current address.
It is not legal to gain access to one's relatives' medical records. Non-adopted people do not have the right to access their relatives' medical records, and only have bits and pieces of "medical gossip."
Natural mothers usually submit their own medical history to their agency. But it is far from complete.
Each individual maintains their own medical history. Each is private.
Only the ability to maintain open contact with the adopted person will ensure some kind of information can be passed on.