Lalos A, Gottlieb C, Lalos O
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospital, Umeå, Sweden.
Hum Reprod. 2007 Jun;22(6):1759-68. doi: 10.1093/humrep/dem063.
In Sweden, a child born as a result of donor insemination (DI) has the right to receive information both about the DI and the identity of the donor. The present study aimed to elucidate parents' thoughts regarding these possibilities, and whether, how and when they had told their offspring about the DI. An additional aim was to examine the parents' experiences of the attitudes of healthcare providers.
A follow-up study using semi-structured telephone interviews with 19 couples, including 19 women and 17 men.
More than half of the parents (61%) had told all their child/ren about the DI, but almost everyone had told another person. Mean age for disclosure was 5 years for the first child. Reasons given for disclosure were to avoid accidental discovery, a desire for openness and a persons' fundamental right to know his/her genetic origin. Parents who did not intend to tell their child/ren considered DI a private matter and were afraid of other people's attitudes. Sixty-one percent of the parents had not yet told their children about the possibility of identifying the donor. Healthcare staff had impacted on the parents' thinking, and a majority of those who had been encouraged to tell their child/ren about the DI had done so.
There was a discrepancy between the intentions of the legislation and how parents act in relation to them. To improve compliance, it is crucial to organize education, support and ethical discussion among professionals, and to offer parents, and parents-to-be, counselling, support and group sessions with other DI families.
在瑞典，通过供体人工授精（DI）出生的孩子有权获得有关DI及供体身份的信息。本研究旨在阐明父母对于这些可能性的想法，以及他们是否、如何以及何时告知其子女有关DI的情况。另一个目的是考察父母对医疗保健提供者态度的体验。
采用半结构化电话访谈对19对夫妇进行随访研究，其中包括19名女性和17名男性。
超过半数的父母（61%）已将DI的情况告知了他们所有的孩子，但几乎每个人都告诉了其他人。第一个孩子得知相关情况的平均年龄为5岁。告知孩子的原因包括避免意外发现、希望坦诚相待以及个人了解自己基因起源的基本权利。不打算告知孩子的父母认为DI是一件私事，并担心他人的态度。61%的父母尚未告知孩子识别供体的可能性。医护人员影响了父母的想法，大多数受到鼓励告知孩子DI情况的父母已经这样做了。
立法意图与父母的实际行为之间存在差异。为提高合规性，关键在于组织专业人员进行教育、提供支持并开展伦理讨论，为父母及准父母提供咨询、支持以及与其他DI家庭的小组会议。
