| FAQs about Adoptions
Domestic Adoptions Q: What is a Homestudy/ Preplacement Study? Do I have
to have one? The homestudy/ preplacement study is a complete
family assessment. At a minimum, each family assessment includes
one joint meeting with the entire prospective adoptive family,
individual meetings with each family member, and a session
in the family home. In addition, each family must prepare and submit the required
documentation prior to the initiation of the interview portion
of the assessment. The Criminal Background Check and CYFD
Abuse and Neglect check must be initiated prior to beginning
the meetings. Everyone who petitions to adopt a child must cooperate with
a home study. This involves interviews with everyone in the
adopting household, a visit to the home, medical examinations,
reference checks, employment and financial verifications,
criminal records checks, and verification of marriages, births,
and divorces. La Familia can also request that you be seen
by an independent mental health professional and undergo psychological
testing as part of your home study. After your assessment is completed, your caseworker will
present the assessment to the other members of the adoption
department. At this meeting, your assessment will either be
approved, approved with stipulations, or disapproved. Q: How do Birth families choose the adoptive family for
their child? Most birth parents want a role in the selection
of the prospective adoptive family. La Familia provides guidance
and final approval about these selections, but the birth parents
usually drive this process. Each prospective adoptive family is provided with information
on how to compile a family profile letter and/or a family
profile album after the family assessment is completed. The
letters consist of information about your family and pictures.
The completed profiles are presented to birth parents who
are considering an adoption plan for their child. La Familia staff does not match children with families unless
a birth parent specifically requests that we do so. This is
very rare. When a birth parent selects a family s/he would
like to meet, La Familia staff will schedule a Match Meeting
between the birth family and the prospective adoptive family.
A staff member will be present to facilitate this meeting
and any meetings thereafter where either party requests our
presence. Several topics are covered during match meetings,
such as openness to continued contact, family traditions,
child rearing beliefs and practices and any other issue of
concern to the biological family or adoptive family. Q: What happens after the baby is born? Most of the
infants we place go directly into their adoptive families
from the hospital. For a variety of circumstances, some infants
enter Cradle Care and then are placed with their adoptive
family a few days later. Our services include preparing the correct papers for the
biological parents to sign after the baby is born to authorize
placement with the prospective adoptive family, coordinating
the discharge of the child and the biological mother with
hospital staff, preparing, reviewing and signing placement
documents with the adoptive family and being consistently
available for additional counseling and support to all participants
in the process. The worker is usually present at the hospital
to help mediate relationships with biological family, adoptive
family, hospital staff and attorneys. La Familia, Inc.'s goal is to assist all families in making
a successful adjustment to their new family. Supervision after
a child is placed in an adoptive home is required by New Mexico
law. These services will begin at placement and continue until
finalization. Your worker will spend time with you on the date of placement
to review the appropriate documents and procedures. These
include: Full Disclosure of Information Regarding the Child,
Social and Medical of the biological parents, Legal Risk Disclosure
and Acknowledgment and the Placement Agreement. In New Mexico, post placement supervision is required for
three to six months after placement. The first visit will
be within 72 hours of placement. After that visit, your worker
will schedule monthly face to face visits until finalization.
Additional visits or referrals may be required in certain
cases. All required reports will be submitted to court prior
to finalization and will remain a permanent part of the case
record. 
International Adoptions Q: Are international adoptions more expensive than domestic
adoptions? Every international adoption is as unique
as the country your child will come from. In most cases, the
Pre-Placement Study and Post-Placement Services will cost
the same amount as our Domestic Adoption program fees. However,
we have learned that it is necessary to review the specific
program requirements of your designated Placing Agency prior
to setting your fee for International adoption services. Please remember that you will not be billed until La Familia
has reviewed the requirements of the Placing Agency and informed
you of the estimated cost to complete the study. We want you
to know what you are paying for and why you may have to pay
more than the estimated cost. Q: How do you find international children who are waiting
to be adopted? We currently network with several International
adoption agencies throughout the country. Contact La Familia
for more information. Q: Where can I get more information about international
adoption? Since La Familia only provides services for
International Adoption and does not currently have an International
Adoption program, we provide the following links for you to
explore further:
Searches Q: When can I search and what information can I get? Biological
Parents and Adoptees can initiate a search when the adoptee
turns 18 years old. Prior to that time, the Adoptive Parents
can initiate a search. Only non-identifying information will
be released unless the person being sought has filed a release
of information. If there is a release of information, identifying
information can be released. Q: What is a Confidential Intermediary? Do I need one?
A confidential intermediary requests the record of adoption,
which is on file with La Familia or the Children, Youth and
Families, Central Adoption Unit. If someone calls the agency
and is unsure whether La Familia was the agency involved,
La Familia will verify that information without cost. The record will be examined for written consent from the
sought-after party stating a desire to be located if a search
is initiated for him or her. If written consent is not found
in the file, La Familia will notify the searching party and
inform them of the process involved in appointing La Familia
as a confidential intermediary. If written consent is located
in the file or once La Familia has been appointed as a confidential
intermediary, the following steps will be taken. The La Familia representative will attempt (from information
in that file) to locate the individual(s) for whom the search
is commenced. This will include calls/letters to any individuals
listed in the files who may be of assistance in locating the
individuals being sought. If the information in our file indicates
that only certain family members knew/are to know of the adoption,
effort will be made to contact only those persons. La Familia
can perform any other file searches, records checks or other
types of cross-referencing within its means and scope of service
delivery, these will be pursued. La Familia strictly adheres to the state of New Mexico Adoption
Statute and Regulations concerning post-decree of adoption
access to records, section 32A-5-40 NMSA 1978. La Familia
will assist search efforts of adoptions performed by other
agencies or independent sources within the state of New Mexico
from the Children, Youth and Families Department, Central
Adoption Unit in Santa Fe once we have been appointed as a
confidential intermediary. La Familia will assist any party
of the adoption triad. Searches are performed in a professional, discreet, confidential
manner. The staff of La Familia is committed to provide professional,
quality services to all clients. We make every effort within
our means to ascertain the wishes of the involved parties
of a search. It is not always possible to locate the sought-after party
in a search. La Familia makes no guarantees or promises that
the sought-after will be located after paying a search fee
and commencing the search. We do promise to make every effort
as outlined in this policy to assist in a search. All searches that may result in contact with the sought-after
adoptive party are performed on a basis of mutual consent
only. We honor all parties' desire for privacy.
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