1.   Adoption disruption.

(1) Request for removal of child.  Form 04AN017E, Affidavit of Adoption Disruption, documents the removal request, and is routed according to form instructions.

(A) Prior to the child's removal from the home, or as soon as possible thereafter, the adoption specialist consults with Children and Family Services Division Adoption Services Section regarding planning for the child.  No attempt is made at this time to assess with the adoptive family the adoption failure or decide why it happened.

(B) The adoption specialist and adoption supervisor staff the disruption with the designated Adoption Services Section programs field representative.

(2) Assessment of disruption.  Once the family and child are resettled and the grief process is underway, the reassessment of the adoptive home may begin.  The reassessment focuses on why the adoption did not work and whether the adoptive family will continue to be recommended for placement.

(A) Some common reasons that adoptions do not succeed are:

(i) the adoptive parent(s) and child were unable to form an attachment to each other;

(ii) the child or adoptive parent(s) was not ready for the adoptive experience;

(iii) the adoptive parent(s) lacks the capacity to be an adoptive parent to any child; and

(iv) the child lacks the capacity to function in any adoptive family.

(B) The decision to attempt another adoptive placement with the family must allow for the resolution of the earlier failure.  This includes coming to terms with the reasons for the failure, and mourning the loss.