Regardless of the motives of the Americans who tried to improperly remove the children from Haiti, one thing is certain. They have negatively affected many lives.

Whenever there is an abuse of the system that has been set in place for international adoptions, there will always be a backlash that will create additional restrictions and delays. This situation has given fuel to groups (and individuals) that are against international adoption or believe it should be more restrictive.

Some of the restrictions will come from our own government in the form of increased scrutiny of petitions, paperwork, visa requests and entry at the U.S. Border. This will result in additional delays in processing and completion of international adoption paperwork and issuance of visas. But, it is a necessary result, as the U.S. State Department, consular officials, USCIS and immigration officers do their best to follow the laws that are in place to assure that children are adequately protected. It is too soon to tell whether these delays will have any effect on "wait times" for approval of adoption petitions for countries other than Haiti.

Added to the chaos that is already going on in Haiti, the Americans' ill-advised actions will only create additional delays in establishing a fair and legal system to deal with the orphans in that country, as valuable resources and time will be wasted in dealing with the misguided Americans.

On the other hand, if it is true that something good always comes from every adversity, perhaps this situation has served to point out the inadequacies of the current system. The situation in Haiti may be the "call to action" for the world community to create a unified set of guidelines for dealing with the children who are displaced when a countrywide disaster strikes.

For any parents who are considering international adoption, I would encourage you not to be discouraged by any of this, but just be ready to exercise patience throughout the process. For anyone who has decided to adopt from Haiti, you will need to be very patient, since there will be a waiting period while children are properly identified and given clearance for adoption. (Not an easy task in a place where all documentation has been lost and some heartbroken parents may feel that they have to give their children away in order for them to survive). Some have suggested that it may take two years to clear children for adoption.

As for us, we are proud to be part of the international adoption community, we are filing petitions for our clients adopting from other countries, and we will be ready to go when Haitian adoptions resume.