Research

The unheard voices of adult adoptees – A mental health perspective

Information

Thank you for your interest and for considering to participate in the research project “The unheard voices of adult adoptees – A mental health perspective”. The purpose of this information is to explain what this research is about and what your participation would involve, so that you are able to provide informed consent before you decide to participate.

As part of my Masters in Social Work which I am currently undertaking at UCC, I have decided to undertake a research project in partnership with Aitheantas – Adoptee Identity Rights as part of a Community Academics Research Links Project (CARL). The aim of this project is to explore the views, needs and experiences of adult adoptees in Ireland, with a focus on the effects of the release of the Commission of Investigations Report into the Mother and Baby Homes (2021) from a mental health perspective, and how it felt to be excluded from the remit of this commission. This study will also seek to highlight the supports that are needed for adult adoptees, and how these supports should be delivered.

Should you choose to participate, you will be asked to take part in a one-to-one interview with the researcher. The interview will be carried out and recorded online via Microsoft Teams, and will last approximately 45 minutes. Please be advised that the researcher will ensure that all information shared during the interview will remain anonymous and confidential, and will only be available to the researcher and the academic supervisor of this research project. Once the interview is complete, the recording will be transcribed and all identifying information will be removed. Following this transcription, the recording will be deleted immediately, and the anonymised transcript will then be securely stored on a UCC OneDrive. Aitheantas will not have access to these transcripts.

Participation in this study is voluntary, and should you choose to participate you can always choose not to answer a specific question, and you can withdraw from the interview process at any time. Once the interview is complete, you can choose to withdraw from the study up to a week after the interview takes place. In this case, the researcher will ensure that all information obtained is destroyed, and will not be included in the findings of the research.

Please note that UCC requires the data collected to be kept for a period of 13 months, which will be securely stored on a UCC database. The information you choose to share will contribute to the researchers Masters in Social Work dissertation, the results of which will be published on CARL’s website.

Please be advised that due to the time constraints, the number of interviews that the researcher will be able to carry out is limited, thus it cannot be guaranteed that everyone who expresses an interest will be interviewed. However, your interest will be acknowledged and greatly appreciated.

Finally, please be advised that should your participation in the interview process lead to any distress, the following supports are available to you:

HSE National Counselling Service for former residents of Mother and Baby Homes

Phone: 1800 817 517 

(Available Monday to Friday from 8am to 8pm and Saturday 9am to 5pm)

HSE National Counselling Service details:

CHO Area 1

Donegal, Sligo, Leitrim

Phone: 1800 234 119

CHO Area 2

Galway, Mayo, Roscommon

Phone: 1800 234 114

CHO Area 3

Limerick, Clare, North Tipperary

Phone: 1800 234 115

CHO Cork Kerry

Phone: 1800 234 116

CHO Area 5

Waterford, Wexford, Kilkenny, Carlow, South Tipperary

Phone: 1800 234 118

CH East

South Dublin, South East Dublin, East Wicklow

Phone: 1800 234 111

Dublin South, Kildare and West Wicklow Community Healthcare

Phone: 1800 234 112

CHO Area 8 (Midlands)

Laois, Offaly, Longford, Westmeath

Phone: 1800 234 113

CHO Area 1/8

Louth, Meath, Cavan, Monaghan

Phone: 1800 234 117

CHO Area 9

Dublin North, Dublin North City

Phone: 1800 234 110

If  you have any further queries regarding this research, please contact the researcher at 114341986@umail.ucc.ie. Thank you.

Skip to content