Medical assessment

[Elle2809]

Myself and my husband are considering adoption. Seen that they do a medical assessment which has made me quite anxious of what that involves physically as I have a fear of needles ect.
is it more of a tick box question sheet or more physical if so what was the physical examination

Hi, ours was nearly 8 years ago now so memory a bit foggy & things may have changed. But in my mind it took about an hour or so was mostly Q&A with some physical parts eg I remember her weighing measuring feeling abdomen listening to chest etc. wasn’t overly invasive physically. I’m not sure if it involved blood tests

what there was after this was lots of unpicking relevant parts with social worker both before the medical from info we gave and after with info from gp. We had inadvertently not disclosed something fairly significant to SW mainly as we’d discussed it on our first visit with his colleague so in our head we had but this caused a long distressing discussion and awaiting feedback as to if we could continue.

Thankfully he realised this was a genuine oversight & we got to continue but underlines the importance of total disclosure & honesty.

I would imagine they will want to unpick some of your anxieties in relation to how you might be able to support a child who may well have medical needs (either known or that emerge over time) and how you would cope with that so worth having a think about.

All the best on your journey wherever it leads!

Mine was a couple of years ago now, it involved pretty much what seahorse described above but because I was over weight my SW insisted on the GP also running full bloods. But this wasn’t needed as standard.

This is what chatgpt says and in my memory (it is quite a few years back), most of is how our assessment went. I don't think we were asked about coping mechanisms and definitely not about our support network. My impression at the time was that different doctors conduct these assessments differently.

The medical assessment for adoption in the UK is designed to ensure that prospective adopters are physically and mentally healthy enough to care for a child long-term. It focuses on overall well-being rather than disqualifying specific health conditions. Here’s what it typically involves:

1. Health History and Lifestyle

• A detailed questionnaire about your medical history (including past illnesses, surgeries, and chronic conditions).
• Questions about your lifestyle (diet, exercise, alcohol consumption, smoking, etc.).
• Mental health history (including any past or current treatments for conditions like depression or anxiety).

1. Physical Examination

• General physical check-up (height, weight, blood pressure, heart, and lungs).
• Assessment of mobility or any physical conditions that may affect parenting.

1. Mental Health and Emotional Well-being

• Evaluation of emotional resilience and mental health.
• Discussion about coping mechanisms, stress management, and support networks.

1. Screening Tests (if necessary)

• Blood tests (sometimes required to check for diabetes, cholesterol, etc.).
• Screening for infectious diseases if relevant.

1. Specialist Reports (if required)

• If you have an ongoing medical condition (e.g., diabetes, heart disease), reports from your specialist may be requested.

1. GP Report

• Your GP completes the assessment, summarizing their findings and offering an opinion on your overall health and ability to parent.

1. Outcome

• The report is submitted to the adoption agency. Minor health issues are unlikely to prevent approval, but more severe or unmanaged conditions may lead to further investigation.

The assessment is meant to ensure adopters are fit to meet a child’s needs, but agencies consider health in context and often focus on stability and ability to provide long-term care.

I was sent for a breast scan, but don't think we had blood tests.

I’ve not come across people needing a blood test unless there was an underlying condition that needed checked. It’s usually a full medical history and physical examination eg height and weight, abdomen exam (external), I think my GP checked my reflexes but in all it wasn’t invasive at all.

How are you going to cope with your child being ill and needing to see doctors? My two had loads of unexpected medical issues, including one of them developing full blown epilepsy at 14. Will you cope?

@Jellycatspyjamas Our's took an hour per person. No blood tests, but very thorough physical exam, even though we were healthy, slim and fit. OP, what exactly are you worried about? Just potential blood tests or something else too?

I think @Arran2024 is making a good point. I also have two children with severe health issues. Neither of them had these issues when we adopted them. Before adopting, I had never been in an ambulance before, now many times. How would you cope with that?

Yes no blood test for us, all discussion, ticking boxes and listening to heart etc. But yes, as PP have said, since then I've watched endless blood tests and IV cannulas for my 4 year old DD, nothing known as adoption but needed afterwards, probably for life. The nursing teams are incredible they do it without you or the child even seeing though with emla cream they dont even feel it just have them chatting. I think also if your husband is ok with needles he can do that side of things if needed? Tbh though when its your child you just have to do it. I am spiderphobic massively but now regularly have to take down spiders for the kids, you just kind of have to as the adult and the spiders are kind of the easy bit now I guess priortities/worries shift?

Personally on myself I am and have been anxious and had a fear due to seeing far too much as a child myself that a child shouldn’t have had to seen. But if my child needed medical attention of course I would seek it to meet their needs the adrenaline would over see any anxiety I might have. It would be one of the things I would have to forget about and put to one side for the sake of the child

Thankyou very helpful. We all have down sides and fears and 100% put them aside for the sake of a child after all we are all human. Yeah he is a lot more better at dealing with it than I am. However like you said when it’s your child you just do it which would absolutely be the case as you want the best for them.

I remember there being something about being able to hold my arms up and some questions, no blood tests. The Dr thought it all very odd. And my son has no medical needs as yet and is generally fit and well except for the odd cold and chicken pox. It's just another thing to tick off the list 👍

I was pretty annoyed about paying something like £75 for the gp to take my height and weight, scroll through my notes and say yeah... all looks ok before signing it off. 10 minutes tops.