Health care support issues for internationally adopted children: a qualitative approach to the needs and expectations of families.

Background: Families of internationally adopted children may face specific problems with which general practitioners (GPs) may not be familiar. The aim of the study was to explore problems faced by families before, during and after the arrival of their internationally adopted child and to assess the usefulness of a specific medical structure for internationally adopted children, which could be a resource for the GP.

Methodology/principal Findings: We conducted a qualitative study using individual semistructured guided conversations and interviewed 21 families that had adopted a total of 26 children internationally in the Puy de Dome department, France, in 2003.