For Immediate Release: Press Review Copies are available

For more information contact: Kathryn Creedy, Institute for Adoption Information, 802-442-2845

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First Simple Guide to Adoption for Pregnancy Counselors Published

The first, simple, easy-to-use guide to adoption designed for health care and pregnancy counselors has been published by the Institute for Adoption Information and Adoptions Together. The new guide is designed for pre-natal and maternity medical personnel, midwives, school counselors and clinic personnel. It will also enable social service agencies working in adoption, to create partnerships with health care workers in their area to provide adoption counseling.

"We published A Guide to Adoption for Health Care & Counseling Professionals to address the lack of accurate information on adoption amongst those who work with women and teens facing unplanned pregnancies," said Kathryn Creedy, executive director of the Adoption Information Institute, a national non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing the understanding of adoption. "We assume adoption is offered as an option. In fact, studies show that 60% of pregnancy counselors never mentioned adoption while 40% gave inaccurate information. These studies also show health care workers mistakenly assume that those facing an unplanned pregnancy, including teens, do not want to discuss adoption. On the contrary, they want to explore it and other options fully. While adoption is not for everyone, it is important that accurate information be shared."

"The need for information on adoption is especially acute for teens," said Susan Saidman, director-domestic adoptions for Adoptions Together, a non-profit adoption agency based in Silver Spring, MD, who coordinated development of the guide. "For teens, less than 1% of unplanned pregnancies result in an adoption plan. There are nearly 500,000 teen births annually in the United States. Teen parents are at greater risk of neglect or abuse severely undermining the entire family's prospects for life. In health care settings, where 80% of teens get their care, the tendency is to short-circuit the consideration of adoption by avoiding the subject, glossing over or mishandling it. However, when accurate information was provided, studies found a 19% increase in the creation of adoption plans."

In addition to the human tragedy resulting from adolescent childbearing, The Robin Hood Foundation, calculated the cost to society at $29 billion a year in 1996.

The guide is designed to help pregnancy counselors, many of whom are volunteers, and medical personnel identify their feelings about adoption and how it impacts their counseling. It outlines the legal process and discusses the positive aspects of adoption for adoptees as well as birth parents. The guide provides resources for those wishing to learn more about adoption and helps maternity personnel provide a compassionate and confidential environment in the hospital setting.

Less than 2% of all unplanned pregnancies result in an adoption plan which can be attributed to the lack of information on adoption, compounded by the fact that social service agencies who work in adoption, do not work in health care settings.

The guide also provides ethical practice strategies to help clients work through whether or not to parent. "Emphasizing ethical adoption practice is especially important to ensure those facing an unplanned pregnancy have all the information they need to make the best decision for themselves and their child," said Creedy. "Studies of birth parents, who thoughtfully planned adoption and felt they had control of the process, paint a positive picture. Statistics show they are more likely to finish school and delay marriage and less likely to live in poverty, receive public assistance, or have another unplanned pregnancy. Even so, we must ensure that adoption is the right decision."

The Guide to Adoption for Health Care & Counseling Professionals is available at $8.00 through the Institute for Adoption Information, PO Box 4405, Bennington, VT 05201; www.adoptioninformationinstitute.org; or 802-442-2845.