Fostering and adoption of children: how the family physician can help

The family physician can play a positive role in assisting prospective adopting or foster parents. He should have a clear knowledge of the agencies in this field and should be aware of the qualities required in fostering or adopting children. He can greatly assist the child by giving him a sense of identity and can help the family over some of the milestones in development. Couples who have just been told that they can never have a child should not be sent straight to the adoption agency but should be encouraged to work through their grief and examine their attitudes, since adoption seems to demand a gestation period similar to that demanded by nature.