As influências do tempo entre o abandono e a adoção

Abstract

The evolution of the rights of children and adolescents allowed them to be understood as subjects of rights, especially in regards to the right to full health. This study is guided by the principle of full protection and its applicability to abandoned children who are removed to State shelters and made available for adoption. For the adoption of these children to be understood, Winnicott's theory of development is also used, which implies that foster families may be considered able to "treat" children who endured deprivation, and perceiving the effects caused to their health by lack of essential care. This essay discusses how time from sheltering to adoption affects children at risk. To this end, a qualitative method was used, through a survey of specific literature, legislation, strictly Brazilian academic works on abandonment and adoption produced between 1987 and 2011, and document analysis. Results show that the legal principles that guide cases of child abandonment – whereby the principle of family life is highlighted – have not yet been fully realized. The long sheltering of children can be a risk factor to their health, but in extreme cases, it may be the sole possibility to protect their rights. The importance of life's early stages in the way the foundations of human personality are formed were acknowledged herein, as this period is the cornerstone of an individual's mental health, which is why the time spent in shelters may affect the healthy development of children available for adoption. Therefore, the delay in adoption formalization, and the absence of a sufficiently wholesome environment, may cause serious harm to the child, as they fail to set early life's most essential tasks. In conclusion, comprehensive care of sheltered children demands professional training from caregivers, and involve both preventive and welfare-related action. Adoptions considered good are a long process in which the family, parents and child are transformed, and in which they negotiate and take positions that contribute to setting a healthy environment. Fostering the development of abandoned children can also occur via recreation, through which children can rediscover the world, and mature in healthy ways.