Haeri Mazanderani A., du Plessis N., Lumb J., Feucht U., Myburgh M., Mayaphi S., Lekalakala R., Swanepoel D.W., Georgakis H., Avenant T.
Department of Medical Virology, Tshwane Academic Division, National Health Laboratory Service, and University of Pretoria, South Africa; Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, University of Pretoria and Kalafong Hospital, Pretoria, South Africa; Thusanani Children's Foundation, Gauteng, South Africa; Department of Paediatrics, Kalafong Hospital and University of Pretoria, South Africa; Department of Medical Virology, Tshwane Academic Division, National Health Laboratory Service and University of Pretoria, South Africa; Department of Medical Virology, Tshwane Academic Division, National Health Laboratory Service, and University of Pretoria, South Africa; Department of Medical Microbiology, Tshwane Academic Division, National Health Laboratory Service and University of Pretoria, South Africa; Department of Communication Pathology, University of Pretoria, South Africa; Department of Neurosurgery, Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital, Johannesburg, South Africa; Department of Paediatrics at Kalafong Hospital, University of Pretoria, South Africa
Haeri Mazanderani, A., Department of Medical Virology, Tshwane Academic Division, National Health Laboratory Service, and University of Pretoria, South Africa; du Plessis, N., Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, University of Pretoria and Kalafong Hospital, Pretoria, South Africa; Lumb, J., Thusanani Children's Foundation, Gauteng, South Africa; Feucht, U., Department of Paediatrics, Kalafong Hospital and University of Pretoria, South Africa; Myburgh, M., Department of Medical Virology, Tshwane Academic Division, National Health Laboratory Service and University of Pretoria, South Africa; Mayaphi, S., Department of Medical Virology, Tshwane Academic Division, National Health Laboratory Service, and University of Pretoria, South Africa; Lekalakala, R., Department of Medical Microbiology, Tshwane Academic Division, National Health Laboratory Service and University of Pretoria, South Africa; Swanepoel, D.W., Department of Communication Pathology, University of Pretoria, South Africa; Georgakis, H., Department of Neurosurgery, Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital, Johannesburg, South Africa; Avenant, T., Department of Paediatrics at Kalafong Hospital, University of Pretoria, South Africa
The current legislative framework in South Africa (SA) supports adoption as the preferred form of care for children with inadequate or no parental or family support. There are an estimated 3.8 million orphans in SA, with approximately 1.5 - 2 million children considered adoptable. As a means of improving services, newly drafted adoption guidelines from the National Department of Social Development will in future require both non-profit and private sector adoption agencies to obtain a medical report on a child prior to placement. However, no local guidelines specify what an appropriate medical examination entails or how it should be reported. For the purposes of proposing and developing such guidelines, an open forum was convened at the Institute of Pathology, University of Pretoria, in March 2013. These 'Recommendations for the medical evaluation of children prior to adoption in South Africa' emanate from this meeting.