Medical Professionals Lack Knowledge on Health Implications of Adoption

FRIDAY, Dec. 5, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Adults who were adopted in childhood perceive that medical professionals lack knowledge on the health implications of adoption, according to a study published in the November/December issue of the Annals of Family Medicine.

Julia L. Small, M.D., from the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School in Worcester, and colleagues administered a mixed-methods online survey to 204 U.S. adults adopted in childhood to examine perception of how adoptee status impacts their health care interactions.

The researchers found that most adoptees reported that their medical professionals had knowledge gaps relating to adoption, especially the contribution of limited family medical history to negative health outcomes. Multiple distinct types of adoption-related discrimination by clinicians were perceived by most participants. The adjusted odds of delaying care or changing clinicians were more than seven times higher for those who experienced these negative interactions sometimes or more often compared with adoptees who rarely or never experienced this discrimination.

“Our findings suggest adoption has unique health implications that clinicians should address along with other social determinants of health,” the authors write. “Overall, our findings underscore the need to develop clinical guidelines for clinicians to maximize beneficence while minimizing iatrogenic harms for this patient population whose unique health care needs are underaddressed.”

Abstract/Full Text