Waiting Child Photolisting Archives

Boy, Age: 6

Region: Eastern Europe

Primary Diagnosis: Severe mental disability; Cerebral palsy; Asthma

Gayson is a 6 years old boy who leaves in a Group home in Eastern Europe.

He was diagnosed with severe mental disability, Cerebral palsy and Asthma for which he took medicines and received care from different specialist.

Grayson stands up on his own, even without support. Walks on its own for short distances but is unsteady. Picks up toys of different sizes and shapes by himself and transfers them from one hand to the other or hands them to a person nearby. Recognizes different types of toys and uses them as intended. He is trying to manipulate with scissors and a pencil, recently he has been successful, he is learning to cut along a line. He tries to draw and manages to keep his attention on this activity for a long time. He likes to have other children around him.

Grayson shows interest in what is going on around him. He understands simple instructions requiring 2-3 steps given to him. His vocabulary is increasing with every passing week – he understands most of what is asked of him, but has difficulty pronouncing the words. The child’s speech development is at the level of pronouncing random sound combinations and syllables. He tries to say the words “grandma”, “mom” and “come”.

Grayson is emotional and sociable. He recognizes the voice of a familiar person, he himself seeks contact with the people around him. Shows interest in musical toys and toys that make different sounds. He is calm and smiley most of the time. Grayson seeks contact with other children in the group. Shows interest in various activities. Imitates the actions of older children.

Grayson needs a loving family to love him, to take care about him and to make his life much better then it is in the Group home.

Paul is 7 years old boy, who was raised by his  birth family unti 2016. He was abandoned and in 2016 and was placed in the Baby Home for orphans in Eastern Europe.

Paul is a boy born full-term, with normal physical and motor development. He has been experiencing moderate mental disability and behavioral disorders. Early infantile autism is being discussed, but there is no evidence of a diagnosis in this regard.

Paul is a calm and pleasant child. He is physically very well developed – walks and run by him self, climb stairs an trees and has a sense of self-preservation.

The child expresses his joy by erratically clapping his hands and by making noises. When he is very close to the caregiver, who has lifted him up to the level of her face he takes note of her – he laughs and slaps her with his hand to express his joy and in order to study her face.

QUESTIONS FOR CLARIFICATION ABOUT THE CHILD:

1. On what date was she accommodated in HMSCC – January 2019
2. Diseases or complications of the child’s condition in the period after June 2022 /date of the last Medical certificate- NO
3. New consultations after June 2022 conclusions: NO
4. Hospitalizations after June 2022 – where, dates, diagnoses: NO
5. New immunizations: NO
6. Recent blood and urine tests: NO
7. Is there a change in the motor development of the child, if so, what is it:

Can he walk with someone else’s help and alone –  NO The child cannot walk independently. He moves by pushing when placed in a walker. Stands up on his own and stands on his feet when in his crib. He can get out of bed by himself. The child does not occupy an independent seat.

Does he play with toys, how – Avram likes musical toys. He manages to hold them in his left hand and manipulate them.

8. Speech –

– Does he pronounce combinations of sounds – random sounds

– Does he pronounce syllables – does she make meaningful combinations of syllables? – pronounces combinations of syllables, but does not make sense in them; 

– Does he say words like “mom”, “grandma”, “aunt”, “poop”, etc., does it make sense in them? / “yes”, “no”, “give”? – sometimes

– can he imitate syllables and words or the sounds that animals make “meow”, “baw”, “pa-pa”, etc. – NO

9. Therapies – speech therapist, occupational therapy, physical therapy? – The child has daily therapy with a kinesitherapist and pedagogue. He is followed by a neurosurgeon.

10. Psychological status at the moment, emotional development:

– Is he responsible when she is called by name? – Yes, when he hears a familiar voice.

– What instructions does he follow? – He takes a toy handed to him, throws a ball, wants to hold everything by himself

– Is there a person from the staff of the center to whom she is especially attached? – He is attached to 2-3 of the educators

– Did he quickly adapt to the new situation? – YES

“Does he like to be carried?” Does he let them hug her? When he is upset, how do they calm her down? – He likes to be carried in arms and hugged. 

11. Nutrition?

– Is he learning to drink from a glass?– He drinks from a glass. 

– Does he eat only pureed food? Yes, he eats pureed common food. 5 times a day.

– Is he trying to feed herself – YES

12. Daily habits, daily routine – do you sleep during the day? Is she sleeping well or is her sleep restless? Does she cry when she is put to sleep? Are they teaching her to use a potty? Does she like to be bathed?

Avram does not take an afternoon nap, he eats everything. He is very stubborn and when he decides that he wants to pick up an object, no matter how heavy and large, he does his best.

The child actively uses his left hand.

He still uses a diaper, potty several times a day.

His sleep at night is peaceful.

13. Personal impressions: The child spends a large part of the time in his bed. He gets out of there for meals and general activities with the other children when he is put in a walker. In my opinion, the child needs active work with an occupational therapist, physical therapy and individual work to stimulate his speech skills.

It is in the child’s best interest to be adopted as soon as possible and to receive all the individual care and attention he needs for his development.

• Somatic state (body configuration and state of health):

During the last six months there is no data of the child to have suffered from virus diseases or to have suffered incidents. Rey usually passes through an illnesses because he refuses to take any kind of medications. The only chance for him to take a medication is in the hospital with infusions. He had a bronchial asthma, but with the time it has subsided. He had Varicella in March 2020. At the present moment his condition is stable. He doesn’t have any chronic diseases. His physical development is delayed according to his calendar age. He had suffered from Covid-19 in March 2022. He went through it relatively easily.

• Motor development:

At the present moment there is observed motor delay that is behind the norm with the child. It corresponds to a child on the age of 3,5-4 years old. He tries new activities carefully, he is curious. He catches, touches and sometimes smells the objects that he sees around him. He tries to jump. He has difficulties with climbing and going down on stairs – he walks on them stair by stair and leading is one of the legs. He seeks support around him to feel more confident. He establishes short eye contact. There is observed a period of time when he is able to perform a set task or to answer a question. There are moments when he plays independently. He has delay in relation to the spatial orientation of the norm for his age.

Fine motor skills: There is observed delay in the fine motor skills. The child is able to catch and squeeze objects, toys. He can’t hold correctly pen or pencil. He knows the letters and the numbers, he names them in English and in Bulgarian. He knows the fruits and the vegetables and names them. He has developed passive vocabulary for all objects and names them. He also names the animals. He makes attempts to color in an outline, but he has difficulties. For him it’s easier to scribble and usually he does it in the shape of a circles, holding two pens in both of his hands. He is trying to do puzzles from 16 parts. He can hold a spoon and a fork, also a cup and to drink correctly. He eats independently – often just using his hands. He can undress himself, but he has difficulties with dressing himself and putting his shoes on.

2. Psychological state:
   • Perceptions and ideas: Rey knows and distinguishes the colors, he names them always clearly and knows them in English. He can say the numbers up to 10 in English and Bulgarian. He knows the Bulgarian and English alphabet.
   • Attention: The attention is unstable. There are moments when he does something for short time – playing with a constructor, building a house. He decides when to stop with the game.
   • Memory: mechanical memory
   • Thinking: visual-active. He can count, to add single digit numbers and single digit with double digit numbers. Counting calms him down. He doesn’t show interest in books.
   • Imagination: there is missing recreational imagination. He enters in roles in the game, he imitates dolls and situations. He names and imitates also animals.
   • Intelligence: There is delay from the norm for his age.
   • Spatial and time orientation: He has established ideas of spatial orientation. For time relationships still doesn’t have ideas.
3. Emotional development (prevailing emotional states, level of anxiety; depression; aggressiveness): He is very emotional. Sometimes he is more agitated. With moderate level of anxiety. He establishes eye contact. There is observed delay in his cognitive development for his age. Indications for autism. There is an emotional bonding between the child and the foster parent. He likes to walk barefooted and this is how he gets to know the environment – it is observed that he has stronger sense of the feet then the hands.
4. Speech development and sociability (communication skills and dialogue skills, expression of feelings when interacting, use of non-verbal means when interacting):

The child has developed passive vocabulary. The speech is not clear when he says certain words. He doesn’t know all the animals. He likes small animals. At the present moment he makes two simple sentences from 2 words. He has some vocabulary with English words. He learns quickly poems that somebody reads to him.

5. Personal development (self-assessment; characteristic features; interests):

Rey doesn’t have formed self-image. He used to be scared of the mirror before, but now he looks himself in the mirror. He tends to interact with adults. He is not distant with an unknown person, but he lets the person “into his world” when he decides to. He doesn’t go to preschool at the present moment since March 2022 when he had suffered from Covid-19.

6. Orientation in human relationships (with peers; with adults): From the observation made for the child and the foster parent it wasn’t found any kind of problematics. The foster parent tries to incorporate the child to her and to the society.
7. Play (play skills, preferences to play on his/her own or with peers, involvement in role-playing games and in symbolic play): Rey tries to play symbolic or story games alone or with peers, adults. He plays independently with stuffed toys, constructors, Lego. He loves to build houses. He plays with other children. He is very musical and tries to imitate melodies. He catches and throws a ball with both hands. He rides a balance bike.
8. Education (knowledge, skills and competence of the child/the school boy/girl); preferred subjects and activities at school; difficulties in the educational process): He is enrolled in a preschool. He has stopped going for two months during the summer break and after that he went back. He has stopped going since March 2022.
9. Every day habits and hygienic habits /skills to take care of himself/herself (including sleep, eating, etc.): Rey tries to eat by himself. He usually smells first the food before eating it. He has periods when he choses what to eat, like there was a period of time when he wanted to eat only red food. He tries to dress himself independently, but still needs assistance with that. He has removed the diaper by himself at the age of 5 years and 4 months and at the present moment he has good self-regulation. He goes by himself to the restroom. He needs assistance with the shoes and with the bath time.
10. Attitude towards the adoption process: He doesn’t understand the concept due to the deficits that he has.