Forced adoption support services scoping study Daryl Higgins, Pauline Kenny, Reem Sweid and Lucy Ockenden Report for the Department of Social Services by the Australian Institute of Family Studies February 2014

16Study methodology

The methodology of the Scoping Study comprised five distinct components:

conducting a literature review to synthesise previous research on forced adoptions and the impact they had on people, including long-term effects and their current service and therapeutic needs, as well as reviewing best-practice models for meeting those needs;

conducting nationwide consultations with key stakeholders;

mapping the services currently available for people affected by forced adoption practices and analysing the strengths, promising practices, weaknesses, barriers and gaps;

scanning the environment for other models of service delivery that may have applicability in the context of forced adoptions service support options; and

developing evidence-based national service model options that will complement and enhance the existing services and fill gaps to better meet the needs and expectations of those affected by forced removal policy and practices.

16.1Literature review

One of the purposes of the literature review was to build on the review conducted by AIFS in 2010 (Higgins, 2010), which identified that forced adoption practices have the potential for lifelong consequences for those affected, specifically women and their now adult children, as well as others, such as their families, the father, the adoptive parents and their families.

In particular, the review seeks to:

examine the existing evidence from the the AIFS National Study (Kenny et al., 2012), regarding the impacts of forced adoption and identify current service and support needs of those affected;

supplement the evidence from the AIFS National Study by systematically reviewing the relevant Australian and international literature, both descriptive and critical;

identify the range of services/interventions appropriate for those affected by forced adoptions;

examine models/systems of care that are utilised in other areas of trauma-informed and related practice that may be appropriate and transferable to those affected by forced adoptions;

determine how such systems of care have been created to address other community needs and what can be learned in the current study context in developing models/options of care;

synthesise the findings into a conceptual map of how the needs of those affected by forced adoptions fit together within identified theoretical frameworks.

16.2Stakeholder consultations

One of the main components of the Scoping Study was the design and conduct of workshops and consultations with relevant services and individuals providing support to those affected by forced adoptions—as well as with agencies and individuals with experience in service delivery models for related areas (with individuals who have experienced significant interpersonal trauma or mental health consequences from events, particularly those that carry shame, secrecy or stigma).

Incorporating the findings from the systematic literature review and relevant information from the AIFS national study (specifically, components of effective service and support models as identified by participants directly affected by forced adoption), a platform of best-practice principles was developed from which to deliver a series of half-day workshop-style consultations with service providers across all Australian states and territories.

16.3Service mapping

To supplement the findings of the literature review in relation to the service and support needs of those affected by forced adoptions, an investigation of the current service options available has been undertaken.

A systematic approach was applied to identifying the range of services and supports available in each state and territory to those affected by forced adoptions. This was achieved through:

extraction of relevant data from the AIFS National Study (Kenny et al., 2012), which identified specific services/support options for those affected by forced adoptions;

a web-based search of adoption-specific and related services; and

consultation with existing networks (including relevant participants from the AIFS National Study).

16.4Environmental scan

Scoping of other health and welfare models of intervention whereby “continuity of care” and “shared care” is viewed as best practice was identified as being of benefit to this study.

We conducted a thorough online search and used our professional networks across a broad range of service-delivery fields in the social/welfare arena to identify relevant models and key learnings that might be transferable to better meeting the needs of those affected by forced adoption and removal policies and practices. For example, the use of integrated care models whereby the skills and expertise of a range of adoption-specific and generalist services can be combined to provide a “continuum of care” for service users, providing them with a range of experience and expertise that is appropriate and adaptable according to their presenting needs.

16.5Service options/models for implementation

Workforce development and capacity building is a major consideration for this study. Findings from the AIFS National Study identified that the predominant issue faced by individuals affected by forced adoption practices was that there were not enough services available to adequately and appropriately meet their needs, and when services were available, the professionals often lacked knowledge about adoption-specific issues. Furthermore, service providers who participated in the study said that many clients were not aware of the services available to them, and those who were aware often found that the cost of accessing the services made long-term involvement prohibitive.

Synthesising the results from the varying components of the study has provided valuable information as to how the capacity of the existing workforce may be enhanced.

17A note on the terms of reference

The terms of reference for the scoping study were largely focused on the services providing targeted support to people affected by forced adoption. Therefore, the service mapping has not focused on mainstream mental health services. There was minimal consultation with mental health stakeholders outside specific forced adoption support services, and no consultation with individual service providers of Commonwealth-funded mental health services such as ATAPS. Commentary on the nature of these services is derived from information provided by the adoption-specific services.

Importantly, the purpose of the Scoping Study was not to explicitly identify organisations or services to receive additional government funding. Our aim was to provide the government with a report that reflects the identified needs and the responses from stakeholders that address these needs, then present options for both enhancing existing services and addressing unmet needs.