Adoption Beyond Infancy

February 16, 2016

Hosted by Dr. Gordon Atherley

Family Caregivers Unite:  Listen here!

Guests: Jane De Pauw (Chairperson Adoption ABI); Sylvie Hebert-Adoptive parent

Episode Description

Jane De Pauw lives in Sherwood Park, Alberta, Canada, with her husband and two children who were adopted through the Alberta foster care system. Sylvie Hebert was born in Buckingham, Quebec, Canada. She and her husband started their own family and then set up their own medical foster home. They explain the Adoption Society of Alberta, http://www.adoptionabi.com, and the support it provides for parents who have adopted children. They discuss the experience of adoptive parents. They highlight what they each see as the challenges faced by parents when the children they have adopted have special needs related to mental health disabilities and physical health. They explain the ways the Adoption Society’s support helps overcome the challenges with disabilities such as fetal alcohol spectrum disorder who are living at home and when they also are at school. They say what more they both would like to do and see done to promote the Adoption Society of Alberta