Vietnam...

I don't know about the mood meds, but to get a visa the child has to be a documented orphan, either no parents or abandoned, or one unable to care for them. I am not sure how they would have been able to do this. I would have thought maybe the birth mother was a teen, but not likely if this was the third child. Why would the birth mother be in the orphanage with her? It seems unlikely she would have been eligible for adoption. Maybe I am just suspicious, but her line about regretting the decision has my antanae up in case she is hoping someone will step in and offer to take her. I know that was my first instinct when I read it, it was to think "poor baby, if they can't handle her, give her to me!" If other people think the same thing, it may be a possible opening for fraud. I may be way off base. I have read that vietnam is more flexible about medications.

Guatemala's process is/was the only one I am really familier with, but 'mood meds' were not an issue for Guatemala. And I know of many cases where birthmothers were visiting their child in foster care during the adoption process. It was not the case with my children (at least that I know of) and I honestly don't know how the Guat government would have viewed it, but I know it did happen. The majority of Guatemalan adoptions were reliquishments in which the parent (usually the mother) attested to her inability to care for the child thus allowing them to be adopted and qualify for a visa. I know nothing about the former process in Vietnam and her thread did make me wonder a little, but based on my experience with Guatemala I don't think it is beyond the realm of possiblity if Vietnam was at all similiar. I know of at least one person off the top of my head from the Guat board who has adopted from Vietnam. Would you like me to PM her and ask some basic process questions?

That would be great Debbie, thanks! I know Guat's process of foster care is different than so many countries so I'll be interested to know if Vietnam is similar. Rainey - the visa situation is a good point, and one I didn't think of so will be interesting to see what facts we find.

She was online when I logged on so I just PMed her. I ask her about the basic process and birthparent involvement as well as medical requirements of PAP's.

Here is her response . . . My son was in a very small orphanage, never more than 14 children with 5 nannies and a dr. Most all children are in orphanages. Alot are abandoned and the officials have to make 3 attempts to find the birthmother in the area and surrounding areas that the baby was abandoned at. They also run the all the local newspapers a picture of the baby and what stats they know of for 60 days to see if any family comes forth. For the babies that are relinquished they have to have dna test with baby and mother (this just started in 2008)

Not sure about anti depressents for pap's but I have 2 friends that adopted from our baby home and 1 has chron's disease (sp?) and the other one has problems with blood clotting and neither one of them had any trouble getting approved. It sounds like if Meadowroad's child's birthmother and her sisters worked in the orphanage and reliquishments were possible in Vietnam, the story could be true. And Vietnam doesn't sound like it was as strict with medical issues in PAP's as some other countries. The child would still qualify for a visa as long as the birthmother could show her inability to care for the child just like with Guatemalan reliquishments. If there is anything else you would like me to ask her, let me know.

She sounds legit to me, but from my understanding Vietnam is currently closed to adoptions within the US, as of September 2008. However, that might just be new applicants, and not anything that was already in process prior to September 2008. I don't know enough to give a strong input.