9/7/2016

The Child
Study Report

Dear Mother (Who I Never Knew):

I thought I would take a few minutes and tell you
about the son you gave birth to; since chances are

great that you will never read this I guess this letter is
more for me than you, a cleansing of sorts to put
things in perspective and bring some closure.
I had a good childhood. I was small for my age but
finally grew to a fairly normal size. I was a happy child
with good friends and a great neighborhood to
explore and a safe environment that fostered learning

and love.

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I was sickly as a child, seemingly catching every flu

and cold bug but I managed to avoid the horrible
diseases that so many caught.
I have made mistakes along the way, Mom.
I was a school teacher for eighteen years; I have
always loved children and it turned out I had a special
talent in a classroom, a real passion to pass on
knowledge to my students. Besides teaching I have
had twenty other jobs to put bread on the table and
each job taught me something about life and
responsibility.

Today I write full time and I have found the same

passion for writing that I once had for teaching.
I have never tried to find you, Mom, as so many
adopted kids do..But of course I still would like to. I
decided a long time ago that you had your reasons
for placing me with an adoption agency and that I
respect those reasons, whatever they may be. It is not
for me to judge you; you did what you thought was
right at the time and I can never know why you made
that decision because I wasnt there and I am not you.

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There is no blame in this letter. I was adopted by two

people who loved me and gave me the best
upbringing a boy could ask for; to blame you when I
was given everything I needed by my adopted
parents would be silly of me.

I guess I wanted you to know that I love you and I

wanted to thank you. You so easily could have opted
for an abortion. There were ways to have it arranged
and in many ways it would have been the easy
solution for you.

Instead you carried me for nine months and then

endured the physical pain of giving birth and the
emotional and psychological pain of giving your son

away and I know without any doubt that you must

have suffered greatly in doing so.
So I thank you, Mom; you gave me birth and in doing
that you gave me a chance, and later that boy you
gave life to is a happy and fulfilled man who is
surrounded by love. That is an incredible gift, Mom,
and I will forever love you for that gift.

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I hope you are alive and well; if not I hope you had a
good life, a loving life, a life filled with wonder, in
short the same kind of life you gave me.
Love always,
Bill

The Child
Study Report

9/7/2016

The Child Study

Report
is an essential document in the
Adoption Process
(pre and post adoption phase)

The Child Study Report is

vital for the:
Matching Process
Adoptive Parents
Adoptee

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For the matching

process
The CSR is the first and crucial
document being reviewed. It
guides the Adoption Placement
Committee to select the best
and suitable family, based on
the needs of the child.

For the Adoptive

Parents
The CSR provides them a
good picture of the child
matched to them.
It gives them an over-all
description
of
the
child
(developmental milestone and
current functioning physical,
cognitive, social and emotional)

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For the Adoptive

Parents
It serves as the basis for them
to know if they have the
capacity to meet the childs
specific needs.

For the
Adoptee
The case study is an
important valued source of
information about origins and
roots especially when they
desire to come back.

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Contents
I. Identifying Information

II. Sources of Information and

Circumstances of the Referral
III. Background Information
A. The Child
1. Description of the Child Upon
Admission

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Contents
A. The Child
2. Medical and Developmental
History of the Child
3. Current Functioning
4. Description of the Childs
Present Environment
B. The Family

Contents
IV. Termination of Parental
Rights/Facts of Abandonment

V. Assessment/Evaluation
VI. Recommendation

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Spelling of the name should be

accurate
Indicate in the case study not only
first and last name of the child but
also the middle name if he/she has
one as indicated in the birth
certificate.

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Common Observation
The child has a middle name in his birth
certificate, but his Child Study Report does
not bear his middle name.
Please note that some countries
misconstrue this as referring to two
different persons.

Non-marital or born out of wedlock

should be used referring to birth status
(and not illegitimate)

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Do not anymore include the

Family Composition for
confidentiality purposes.

Complete address is not necessary.

The address of significant people (e.g.,
birth family, foster parents, etc.) in the
child's life as identifying information
is supposed to be kept confidential.
Indicating town/city where the significant
person is residing is enough.

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IDENTIFYING INFORMATION
Name
Sex/Age
Date of Birth
Place of Birth
If foundling:
Given Date of Birth
Date and Age when Found
Place when found
Date of Admission to Agency
Birth Status (Legitimate/Non-marital child)
Category (Surrendered/Abandoned/Foundling)
Date Surrendered/Declared Abandoned in Court
Present Whereabouts

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At best this section should be not more than

two (2) paragraphs. Information must be
precise and direct to the point.
Why was the child referred and admitted
to the child caring agency?
(Circumstances)
Age of child at the time of referral
Who referred the child?
(The person responsible for the referral)

When was the referral made?

When was the child finally
admitted?

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Sample
On December 10, 2008, Eleonor, the childs birth
mother, referred to the Childrens Home her
youngest son, Leonard. At first, Eleonor wanted
to

place

Leonard

Considering

that

for

Eleonor

temporary
was

shelter.

breastfeeding

Leonard at the time of referral, it was stressed by

the social worker that it would be best for the time
being for her and the child not to be separated
because of the breastfeeding.

Sample
Eleonor and Leonard was referred to the home for
the unwed mothers . On January 10, 2009, Eleonor
came to the Childrens Home to inform the social
worker that she has made the final decision to
refer the child to the home in favor of legal and

proper adoption. It was the third time Eleonor had

referred the children to the home. She had done
the same thing with her three previous children
who were placed for adoption five years ago.

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Acceptable:
On January 10, 2009, the social
worker of the Home for the Unwed
Mothers referred Eleonor and her
son who was then seven (7) months
old to the Childrens Home for case
management. Eleonor admitted that
she has no permanent source of
income and no other relatives to
support her and provide for the child.

Common Observation:
It was stated that, The child was abandoned by her birth
mother xxx Words such as abandoned and/or
absconded imply deliberate attempt to forsake the child
when no one really knew what led to the birth mother to
leave the child.
Refrain from using these words in consideration of the
child's future reaction. The word abandoned
could either be rephrased with
"The child was found"
or
" The child was left with..."

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Avoid using the word Abort

The word "abort" has negative
connotation. This can be rephrased to,
"She took medicines to terminate the
pregnancy.

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A. The Child
1. Description of the Child Upon Admission

Age
Personality
Data on anthropometric measurements of the
child (height or length, weight, head and chest
circumference)
Clothes that the child wears
Is the child clean?
Graphic details should not be included,
especially if it is negative.)
Habits and other significant behaviour

Description of the child upon admission

If the child is foundling, indicate the childs
condition/physical appearance (without including graphic
details) and behavior when found.
Information on who named the child and the significance
of the name.
Basic information about the finder
(i.e. age, occupation, civil status) and rule out
if he/she is related to the child.)

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Description of the Child Upon Admission

There should be a baseline assessment of
what the child could already do at the time
of admission so that the prospective
adoptive parents would know how the
child has developed.

Salient information on the child's development history

prior to admission to the Child Caring Agency (CCA)
should be included (i.e., circumstances of child
birth that is type of delivery, place of birth, birth
weight/ length, head circumference, result of
newborn screening, immunizations received, etc).

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9/7/2016

If child was with the birth mother or the

child stayed with relatives or institutions for
some period, information from the
concerned party should be included.
Did the birth mother breastfeed the
child?

2. Medical and Developmental History

of the Child

Illnesses acquired
Immunization and medicines given
Laboratories
Indicate generic names of the
medicines given to the child or the
brand names (if the child took
medicines)

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Common Issues and Recommendation

Periodic growth record is incorporated in the Child Study
Report notwithstanding its presence in the Health and
Medical Profile.
There is no need to include growth record in the Child
Study Report since growth record is in the Health
and Medical Profile. The social worker will then
be able to focus on giving an account about
the childs developmental achievements.

Common Issues and Recommendation

Every child should be protected from common childhood
diseases. Foreign partners are particular as to what kind
if immunizations have been given to the child. If the child
has no immunizations. Please discuss with the
pediatrician the catch up immunizations that child should
have.

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Bedwetting
If bedwetting persists up until the child is six (6) years old
and above, pediatrician must be consulted who will
determine if the child has to be seen by a specialist.
What remedies have been undertaken to curb
bedwetting? The frequency of the child's
bedwetting in a week should be included in the
Child Study Report.

If child is a foundling
What was the pediatricians basis for age
approximation? If none, submit bone ageing
test result or dental assessment.

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When a child is small for gestational age

at birth (i.e., below 2.5 kilograms)
According to ICABs medical consultants
low birth weight could be closely
associated with inhibited growth and
cognitive development. Medical and
developmental surveillance is
recommended.

A. The Child

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The developmental milestones,

which the child achieved.

Motor Development
When did the child
start to roll over,
crawl, sit, stand,
walk, run, jump,
hold a pen, etc.

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Speech Development
Mention about the
childs speech
development (i.e.until
he was 1 year old and
11 months.)
When did he/she start
to babble sounds,
utter single words,
etc.?

Cognitive Development
When did he/she start
reading Alphabets (ABC)?
When did he/she start
putting legos or puzzles
together?
State the age of the
child not the date

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Periodic reporting of child's development should

include the child's age and not the date
Instead of dates, the childs age when significant
life events occurred should be specified
(For example: At 2 years old, the child
was diagnosed with primary complex.)

There are growth records where measurement

of the chest circumference is absent
This should be complete so that the ICPC could
also measure the ratio between head and chest
circumference.

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For Children who are born premature;

Children born premature are at risk for developing eye
and hearing problems, ICABs medical consultants
suggest that the following should be done to rule out
abnormalities:(1) Eye check-up; (2) Hearing test
A premature child is at risk for developmental
problems. Developmental surveillance is recommended.
If the child is not achieving developmental milestones
expected for his age, developmental assessment is
recommended.

Child is labeled in the Child Study Report to have

developmental delays
Observation of the social worker should be supported by
a developmental assessment

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Highlights of the
psychological evaluation must
be included (i.e., result of the
psychological evaluation and
the interventions required).

Current Functioning
Information that describe how the child is
in terms of his development;

Physically
Mentally
Emotionally
Socially

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Current Functioning

Current Functioning
1. How many words does he speak
in a sentence? Give example
and its English translation

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Current Functioning
2. Is the child able to do the following?
- climbs onto furniture without difficulty
- walk up and down the stairs
- swing leg to kick a ball
- runs easily
- bends over easily without falling
- Makes vertical, horizontal, circular
strokes with pencil or crayon

Current Functioning

3. The social worker should

include how does the child relate to
other children, caregivers,
strangers, or whether or not the
child has developed emotional
attachment to a specific person in
the child caring agency

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Some information needed to be

included in the case study of older
children:
1. Activities being done to prepare
them for adoption
2. Their attitudes and feelings
towards adoption
3. Understanding of adoption
4. What are his/her views about her
role in her prospective adoptive
parents.

Some information needed to be

included in the case of older
children:
5. Reservations, if any about being
adopted
6. Concept and understanding of
family, its composition and
function.
7. Feelings about leaving her
friends, significant adults and
familiar environment.

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Some information needed to be

included in the case of older
children:
8. Feelings about living in a foreign
country with a different culture.
9. What will be his/her biggest
challenge when placed to an
adoptive family?
10. If the child had a happy
memories about birth family, how
does he/she feel about being
separated from them?

Some information needed to be

included in the case of older
children:
11. Communication skills
12. Their likes and dislikes
13. What makes them sad, happy,
angry, etc.?
14. School performance (Grade/year
level/strongest and weakest subject)
15. Psychological evaluations,
results and recommendations by the
psychologist.

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Description of the Childs Present

Environment
Physical
description of
the child caring
agency or the
foster home
where the child
is currently
staying or
being cared for.

Sample
The childrens home is a private child
caring agency duly licensed by the
Department of Social Welfare and
Development to care for the abandoned,
neglected, surrendered and dependent
children ages 0-4 years old. This
residential child care facility has a
maximum capacity of 20 children.

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Sample
There are 12 female caregivers
caring for the children. The ratio is
1:4, one caregiver per eight working
hours (6 a.m. -2 p.m., 2 p.m.- 10 p.m.,
10 p.m. 6 a.m.) for 4 children.

Sample
The childrens home is situated on top
of a hill in a peaceful subdivision. It is
accessible to community facilities and
business centers such as schools,
churches, and hospitals/clinics and far
from conflict areas, rivers and other
structures that may post hazards to all.

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B. The
Family
This presents
pertinent
background
information
on birth
family

B. The
Family

Physical
appearance of
birthmother/
father, body
built, height,
complexion,
hair, eyes, nose,
and disability/
deformity

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B. The
Family

Educational Attainment
Health history
Childhood experiences
Economic situation
Personality
Psychological and emotional
make-up
History of substance/ alcohol
abuse, sexual abuse,
domestic violence, imprisoned
parents criminal record.

B. The
Family
Birthparents attitude
towards the child
during the time that
he was still in her
care.

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B. The
Family

Feelings/reactions
of the
birthparent/s in
giving up the child
for adoption.
Do not anymore
indicate the last
known address of
the mother.

B. The
Family

Avoid condemnatory
statements about the mother.
Child was intentionally
left by his biological
mother. Leaving her child
in the hospital without
someone to attend to him
is a manifestation of the
birth mothers rejection
and minors being
unwanted.

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B. The
Family

Avoid condemnatory
statements about the mother.
Birth mother was
prevented to hold the
child as she just
finished smoking as
evident by the smell
of the cigarette when
she talked.

B. The
Family

Child has siblings that was

not given up for adoption. In
this case, mention as to
reasons why the birth
mother gave up the subject
child only.
If the child subject for
adoption has a sibling who
was given up for adoption
and was placed via
domestic or inter-country
adoption, efforts must be
exerted to explore with the
family if they can adopt the
child.

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B. The
Family

B. The
Family

Some basic
information about
the sibling/s should
also be included
(e.g., name, age,
present
whereabouts)

Information on the
childrens whereabouts
and situation must be
included in the CSR. Are
they receiving adequate
care?

There may be a need for

the child's siblings to be
assessed whether they are
well taken cared of.

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Case-management
Efforts towards family preservation and
reunification should be exhausted in
consideration of the Principle of Subsidiarity. If
all efforts fail, only then can time-bounded
permanency planning be resorted to.

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Case management requires that in response to

circumstances influencing the decision of the
birthparents to relinquish their parental
authority, appropriate social services should be
provided. The reasons of the failure of these
services from assisting the parents to achieve
this goal should be clearly stated in the report.

Information if the birth mother received

counseling prior to her signing the DVC.
Goals of the counseling.
Adoption being the last resort
Date the Deed of Voluntary
Commitment was signed.
Date petition for CDCLAA was filed
with DSWD

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Facts of Abandonment
State all efforts exerted to
locate the childs family or
relatives.
Indicate when the child
was certified legally
available for adoption
(Date when CDCLAA was
issued by DSWD)

Facts of Abandonment
In cases wherein the
birthmother is a minor, the
maternal grandmother of
the child or next of kin
should give consent and
should sign across the
birthmothers name
in the DVC.

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If the child is
foundling, include in
the Case Study
Report how the
childs age was
determined (i.e.
dental assessment
or bone aging)

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Summary of the childs

temperament, unique
characteristics, specific
needs, that the adoptive
parents should pay close
attention to.
What has the child
become as a result of the
centers intervention?

Do not anymore
restate
circumstances
leading to
adoption.

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Include the type of

family that could best
respond to the needs
of the child/children.
When needed, also
include the problem
that might be faced by
the PAPs to help them
better understand
the children

What are the areas in

the childs growth and
development that the
prospective adoptive
parents have to follow
up once they assume
custody over the child.

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Sample
Rosaura is growing to be a fine and
talented young girl. She has developed
confidence in interacting with other
people already. She is respectful,
honest and shows concern to others.
Rosaura is considered healthy.
She is well prepared for adoption and is
very excited to have a permanent
family.

Sample
She is open to be adopted by a couple
with children already since she enjoys
having children around and she feels it
will help her easily adjust with her new
family. She also hopes that her future
adoptive parents will allow her to
continue her training in martial arts.

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Example
It is recommended
that Rosaura be
placed to a suitable
loving family who
have experience in
parenting older
children.

a child from House of Refuge

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a child from House of Refuge

a child from House of Refuge

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a child from House of Refuge

Continuation

a child from House of Refuge

Continuation

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a child from House of Refuge

Thank You!

Glady Q. Bunao
Executive Director
House of Refuge Foundation, Inc.

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