When asked, our doctors routinely say they recommend the conventional referral process rather than blind travel (travelling to adopt without any information about a specific child). That said, if you choose to travel blind for whatever reason, we'd be happy to work with you and consult once you're in country. We can send you our "Blind Packet" if you'd like to see how it works.

The most difficult thing about "blind" adoption is the potential for surprises and the inherent pressure to make a quick decision, typically before you come home. For some families this is no problem; they're maybe the "quick to leap" type and/or they have been referred a child who seems relatively straightforward to them and we hopefully agree. But for others, the emotional and intellectual agony of meeting a child (or children), participating in one or several medical consults, and making a decision within hours of first seeing any information, is just too packed a process for their comfort. Add to this some cultural "pressure" (real or imagined) and the juxtaposed concepts of being a loving parent and declining a child who is certainly worthy of parents, and you can see how the process can be overwhelming for some folks. Not to mention truly unfortunate for the children involved, especially older ones that have some idea of what is going on.

So, your agency may not agree with us, but we tend to steer families to the traditional referral process if they ask. It's not that blind referrals don't work out, but it does seem to be a less frantic process for families, allowing for fewer surprises, etc, if you consult and make your decision while still at home.

The cost for our consultation services is higher for blind referrals, as well. They're considerably more difficult and disruptive for our providers, since turnaround needs to be immediate, and families often see multiple children. The good news about the blind fee is that it covers you to consult on one or many children while on the trip. We hope (for your sake and ours) that it's just one terrific child, but if it's more, the additional reviews are included (I think the record is 6 children reviewed on one trip). We are also on-call for you for your return trip to bring the child home.

Last updated on Jul 27, 2007 by Cyndi Musar