A recent mixed-methods study published in The Annals of Family Medicine (2025) examined the unmet health care needs of adults adopted in childhood and highlighted critical gaps in clinician preparedness. Adult adoptees frequently reported that their medical teams lacked understanding of adoption-related health implications, particularly the consequences of incomplete family medical histories. Many participants described distinct forms of adoption-related discrimination, which significantly eroded trust and led to care-avoidant behaviors.
Notably, those experiencing repeated negative interactions had over sevenfold greater odds of delaying care or changing clinicians. The findings underscore adoption as both a lived experience and a clinical identity factor that must be deliberately addressed in routine practice. To delve deeper into the clinical implications and recommendations for…
