MEMPHIS from European Union

Memphis was born in January 2017. He has experienced multiple placements in his short life, including ten months with his family of origin and two years in his current foster family. Memphis was born with cleft lip and palate (surgically corrected) and has also been diagnosed with protein-calorie malnutrition and anemia, mild hearing loss, a small brain lipoma, hyperactivity, and developmental delays. Memphis requires the services of ENT, audiology, a craniofacial team, orthodontics, speech therapy, and special education intervention. Memphis is an active boy who has made great developmental strides since his placement into a foster family in autumn 2020. He is able to walk, run and jump, feeds himself, can dress and undress independently and is potty-trained. Memphis sleeps well and has a good appetite. He can distinguish objects by color, shape, and size, and cleans up a room with reminders. Despite being nonverbal at this time, Memphis’ receptive language is better developed. He carries out simple instructions and responds when called by name. He tries to imitate sounds and simple words but communicates mostly through behavior and showing a variety of emotions. Memphis is well-intentioned toward other children although he prefers to play alone. In recent months, he has begun to use toys according to their function and to demonstrate pretend play. Memphis is well adapted in his kindergarten class and shows confidence on the playground. Our in-country representative visited Memphis and describes him as a curious and energetic boy with a lot of potential for further development.