Eastern Europe has gotten a lot of bad Western press. We are such plank-eyed people, worried about everyone else's specks.
A family visiting Eva's orphanage actually made a formal complaint because a child was in a restraint. Wanna know what that restraint was? A WESTERN-MADE STANDER. Therapeutic positioning to improve a gazillion things including posture, core strength, bone density, breath support....
The reality based on what I've seen and heard and read is this: Eva's baby house does the best they can with what they've got. They don't have insurance nor medicaid. The medical system over here is totally different.
Let's say you are a child with special needs, you live in a baby house, and you get sick. For example: You have cerebral palsy and develop contractures. From your contractures you develop a pressure sore that becomes infected. Okay, so you should go to the hospital, right? Well, there are some hang-ups. If a caregiver brings you to the hospital, she is leaving more work for her co-workers while she's gone. And how are you going to get there? A bus? A taxi? Who's going to pay for that?
Let's assume you do get to the hospital. Maybe someone made a donation to your baby house and there's miraculously money left over for your trip. You have multiple contractures and weigh 35 lbs, but someone still has to carry you up the stairs because children are seen on the third floor and there's no elevator. There's no such thing as ADA over here. You wait for hours to see the doctor and you get thirsty. Tough luck.
The doctor finally sees you. He or she can treat your infection, but in reality you need a surgery and then therapy to correct the contractures which put you at greater risk for bed sores.
You get an expensive antibiotic and antipyretic (maybe you fill it or maybe you don't-do you have cash?), and surgery is discussed. Who will pay for it? Who will chose the right doctor? Which caregiver will wait at the hospital with you to change your diapers and give you water or tea and food? How will you pay for water, tea, and food? How will you pay for your lodging at the hospital? You need medical care after your surgery? That will be a separate trip to a pharmacy where your caregiver will have to select the correct wraps, ointments, saline solution, gloves...etc. Pain medication? Same thing: a luxury not a given. Fluids through an IV? Gotta buy the line, the stick, the tape, everything.
Do you see what I mean?
That's just the medical side.
There's also the caregiving side. Do all of the caregivers love the children they work with? Probably not all of them, but from what I've seen at least most seem to. How many people at your child's daycare love all the children they work with? Probably not all of them either, but they've got to pay bills, right?
Do all of the caregivers do everything like I would? Nope. Have all of your babysitters, daycare workers, *gasp* therapists, and teachers done everything like you would? Nope. That's just reality.
Do such people in the US have more accountability and incentive to do things "right" or the way you want? Definitely.
Do I appreciate the care my daughter has gotten while she's been at her baby house? Yes, I do.
Do I think she should have been in isolation for over two years? No, but who knows what I would have done if I had been her doctors. They are punished for things outside their control. From their perspective, Eva has significant immunological risks. If she were to get an illness and God-forbid die or pass it on to every other special needs child in her room, the doctors would be punished.
What do I think about Eva's caregivers? Despite cultural differences and language barriers, I am able to see different and special ways they serve each other and the children they care for. Honestly, I like them all: Powerful, Meek, and all the rest. I would say so if I didn't. They do things differently than I would do, but that's their prerogative and their culture. When we're home, we can do things our way.
Do I think Eva is better off in a family, specifically our family? By God's grace, yes.
Children absolutely blossom with familial affection. The difference in Eva from two and a half weeks ago is amazing to me-praise God!
I guess that was a soap box.
On to Eva. She and I are still doing a lot of talking, holding, and cuddling. Lots. I think it's therapeutic for us both. I'm pretty sure she's comfortable with me. She has gnawed all over me (we need some Ps or Qs) and she's wet on me three times now. I didn't get very good pictures today, but you get the gist
Labels: adoption, baby house, eva, healthcare, orphanage
