Adoption

[Artman35]

Hey guys,as I posted in thread about surrogacy I have made the definitive decision to take active steps in becoming a parent.Another member here suggested to me that I look into adoption and it is something that I would consider.

My questions are how feasible is it for me as a single man to adopt,how long would the process take and what would it cost financially?

Thanks a mill for all of your help so far .

[Jedt]

I researched adoption alot for some articles I wrote for Irish Independent a few years back and for the life of me, I cannot find those damn articles anywhere now!

Casting my mind back, I remember from speaking with the couples and single parents I interviewed that they all said, it is not an easy process to go though.

It is easier for a couple, rather than a single parent but it is possible for a single person to adopt too.

I am not sure what the rules are for single men as opposed to single women when it comes to adoption – technically there should not be any difference – but in reality it may be easier for a woman than a man.

The process used to take around 4 years and cost anywhere between €14,000-€20,000. I think this has come down now and thankfully, the costs are spread out over time, so it not one lump sum.

It is quite common for Irish parents-to-be to adopt from abroad but that raises a whole host of issues in itself. For example, Ireland has agreements in place to allow adoptions from certain countries but this can be suspended at times due to political unrest. I interviewed a couple who were in the process of adopting from Vietman but then Vietnamese adoptions were halted for a while and this affected them directly. It was very upsetting as they were not sure if their baby son would ever get to come home with them but thankfully, after a few months, it did get sorted.

In Ireland, adoptions have changed too, it used to be closed but now many are open. My cousin had her son adopted in 2010 – she was very young and both her parents are dead – so she decided it would be better for him to have a stable family with 2 parents. She has an open adoption where she visits him 4 times a year and gets progress reports on him. So he knows she is his birth mother and she sees him and has a relationship with him but he is being raised by another couple who are his legal guardians.

I would say, try to make an appointment with someone in the Adoption Authority of Ireland, their job is to answer all your questions and point you in the right direction. http://www.aai.gov.ie/

With this department being set up in 2010, the cost of adoptions was supposed to come down and the overall time to adopt decreased, so hopefully the stats now are better than when I was looking into things in 2008/2009.

Hope some of that helps – please keep us posted on how you get on. There are plenty of shoulders for you to lean on here as you go through the process of becoming a Dad 🙂

[Anonymous]

This press release came into Mumstown today and might be helpful for you.

"Oregon Reproductive Medicine To Host Seminar About The Future of Same Sex Parenting in Ireland"

Oregon Reproductive Medicine (ORM), one of the world’s leading fertility centres based in Portland Oregon, is delighted to announce that they will host a seminar discussing ‘The Future of Same Sex Parenting in Ireland’ in Dublin’s Westbury Hotel on Wednesday, 5th November from 6-9pm.

The seminar will provide gay & lesbian couples with the opportunity to receive medical and independent legal adviceif they wish to start or grow their family using IVF or a surrogate. Speakers will include :

• Brandon J. Bankowski, MD, MPH from Oregon Reproductive Medicine
• Fiona Duffy, partner in Patrick F O’Reilly & Co solicitors, a legal expert who specialises in surrogacy;
• Conor Pendergrast, son of a Lesbian couple and proud to have two Mums
• John Chally and Sandra Hodgson from Northwest Surrogacy Centre in the US
• Richard Westoby, gay father of twins which were born via surrogate in the US.
• Barbara Wiley, Head of ORM Patient Services and former ORM patient who gave birth to twin girls last year.

Civil Partnerships continues to be a great success in Ireland with figures up to the end of June 2014, showing that almost 3,000 people have entered into a civil partnership. 1,467 lesbian or gay couples have entered civil partnership in Ireland, since they first became publicly available in April 2011. They join hundreds of other lesbian and gay couples who married or entering civil partnership abroad, whose relationships are automatically recognised in Ireland as civil partnerships.

Brandon J. Bankowski, MD, MPH commented “We are looking forward to coming to Dublin to speak to same sex couples who would like to have children. Making the decision to pursue your dream of having a baby is a big and very important one for anyone. For same sex parents and those facing challenges with fertility the decisions become that much bigger and potentially complicated. Being informed is key to making a decision that is best for you and your partner .”

Dr Bankowski continued “Portland is very popular with gay couples as it is very gay-friendly city. Prospective gay and straight patients have been travelling from Europe, the mid-East, Australia, and points beyond to seek treatment at Oregon Reproductive Clinic from all over the globe since the clinic opened in 1989 because they want success and ORM has nearly unmatched live birth success rates. Currently they are 85% for Donor egg and gestational carrier cycles.”

Fiona Duffy, Solicitor, Patrick F O’Reilly Solicitors said “I am very pleased to have been asked to speak at this seminar on the legal position in relation to surrogacy in Ireland”

By attending the Same Sex Parenting seminar in Dublin prospective parents will have the opportunity to learn about Oregon Reproductive Medicine, their physician’s education, background and philosophy about their work. The team at ORM of physicians, nurses and embryologists often work with surrogates so if couples are seeking a referral to a surrogacy agency, ORM physicians will be happy to help connect couples with the right people in the US. ORM will be happy to answer any questions and address individual concerns the best they can.
For further information or to register interest in the seminar, please log onto http://www.samesexparenting.org

HTH

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