Elder Mistreatment : A Case Study

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention standardly defines elder abuse as “any abuse and neglect of persons age 60 or older by a caregiver or another person in a relationship involving an expectation of trust” (CDC, Elder Abuse). It is always thought that the elderly are treated with honor, dignity and respect but many of the elderly have been abused and neglected as much if not worse than the children we spoke of in our previous discussions. Who seriously could hurt these frail people, someone’s grandparents, possibly even your own; persons who because of the aging process have lost their ability to fight back and are being bullied or attacked by someone in a position of trust. It is estimated that 70% to 90% of the perpetrators of elderly

In the 1990s, the Elder Abuse Task Force was established by the Secretary of the "U.S. Department of Health and Human Services." The task force developed an action plan for identifying and preventing elder from being mistreated in health care setting. A National Institute on Elder Abuse was established in 1991 as part of the Administration on Aging 's Elder Care Campaign. Adult Protective Service programs now exist in each state to serve vulnerable adults, especially seniors who are at high risk of being abuse and neglect (AMA, 2015). Such actions have been brought to the attention of the public and physician concerning elderly abuse and neglect. Researchers have conducted studies to assess the scope and causes of mistreatment among the elderly (AMA, 2015). Laws have been enacted in each state for physicians and others to report suspected cases. The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) for emergency departments and their ambulatory care centers for identifying elder abuse, in addition to domestic violence and child abuse (AMA, 2015).

This essay will examine elder abuse and its role in our society. The definition of elder abuse and the different types of elder abuse will be examined. Additionally, literature that highlight legislative changes to current elder abuse laws and the origins of those laws will be examined. The paper will also discuss national reports of elder abuse statistics and the current status of elder abuse. Finally, recommendations based upon the information researched will be provided as a guide for the future.

As Americans live longer, it is no surprise that the population of older adults has increased; consequently so has the ubiquitous problem of elder abuse. In the United States elder abuse is an exceedingly, overlooked public health hazard; which covers a wide range of abuses. Approximately 2 million adults, over the age of 60 are abused or mistreated each year. ("Elder Justice: A John A. Hartford Foundation Change AGEnts Issue Brief", 2016) The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has defined elder abuse as "an intentional act, or failure to act, by a caregiver or another person in a relationship involving an expectation of trust that causes or creates a risk of harm to an older adult, age 60 and older” (“Elder Abuse: Definitions”, 2016) Studies show a vast majority of health care professionals underestimate the occurrence of elder

Abuse can happen to anyone, but elderly adults residing in nursing homes are more vulnerable and have a higher risk for abuse (Rasansky Law Firm, 2006, para. 1). Elders are among the fastest growing in the population, and because of this many more elderly

Signs: bruising, bite marks, cigarette burns or other marks that cannot be explained where they could come from.

Elder mistreatment is unrecognized, hidden, and underreported. Studies showed that nurses among health professionals are largely unaware of the various forms of elder mistreatment that take place and of the proper course of action to pursue when mistreatment is suspected Falk, Baigis, and Kopac(2012). People should be aware of the many faces of elder maltreatment, and all health caregivers working with older adults need to recognize, treat, and prevent elder abuse and neglect (Daly, et al., 2012).

As our population ages there are more individuals who are relying on the assistance and the care from others in order to perform tasks throughout their day. With this reliance on other individual’s assistance the elderly population is at an increased rate of experiencing a form of abuse from their caregiver. Children or a spouse are often found to be the abuser for elderly individuals who are still living in the community setting (DeLiema, Navarro, Enguidanos, &Wilber, 2015). This is becoming a growing concern, as it is estimated that around 10% of the United States elderly population is currently or has experiences at least one form of abuse. The forms of abuse that can occur include physical, sexual, psychological or emotional, financial

Elder Abuse is one of the single most important issues affecting the elder population in

When I first started the research on sexual elderly abuse I know that it happens but didn’t know the extent of the finding until now how much emotional, physical, sexual, and financial mistreatment and potential neglect that our elderly endure. Elder sexual abuse is understudied and rarely understood. It is difficult to seek justice for elderly sexual abuse because the victims are over the age of 60 and frequently have medical conditions such as loss of memory, communication problems, or confusion as while as finding the perpetrators who maybe attendants, employees of care facilities, family members including spouses, and others. Facility residents sometimes assault fellow residents while the majority

According to statistical researches by Dong (2015), many elderly adults are abused in their own homes, in their relatives’ homes, or even in institutional settings, especially long-term care facilities (pg.2014). Dong also finds two thirds of abusers to be the adult’s own children or spouses (2023). Family members may begin to actively resent the elderly person and the responsibilities of caring for him or her. In short, older adults are not even safe around the people who supposed to care and protect them. The thought of family members abusing their own loved ones is disturbing.

To better understand the scope of the problem, it is crucial that society knows what is considered as elder abuse and why it is important to resolve this issue. Elder abuse refers to any intentional or negligent act by a caregiver or any other person that causes harm or a risk of harm to a vulnerable adult. There are many forms in which an elder can be abused, “Elder Abuse and Neglect” Journal of Psychosocial Nursing & Mental Health Services distinguishes between the five most common types of elder abuse as well as their effects and/or common signs and symptoms for each. These types of abuse include physical abuse,

There is an average of 293,066 victims (age 12 or older) of rape and sexual assault each year. Also Elder abuse occurs in community settings, such as private homes, as well as institutional settings like nursing homes and other types of long term care facilities. 3.2 million Americans resided in nursing homes during 2008. There is numbers of reasons that evil people abuse a loved one or ill person. In society this type of behavior is not tolerate and people need to be aware of the problem.

Elder Abuse is defined as any activity performed by an individual whereby these actions cause suffering of the older adult, intentionally or not (Touhy, Jett, Boscart & McCleary, 2012, p. 378). Unfortunately, the incidents of elder abuse continue to rise with the increasing number of people entering older adulthood. It is interesting to note that although elder abuse is highly under reported its occurrence increased three fold over a ten-year period (Friese & Collopy, 2010, p. 61). Certainly, it is a nurse’s duty to provide holistic care to his or her patients, which must include protection from abuse. Elder abuse can take on many forms including physical, emotional, sexual, neglect and financial. It is important to note that for the

Children and the elderly are a dependent demographic. Their dependence on their caregivers for sustenance makes them vulnerable to abuse. Abuse can manifest in two forms physical and non-physical abuse. While the victims of aggressive attacks are easily identifiable leading to appropriate actions taken against the culprits, the majority of abuse incidences are latent. Therefore, it is extremely important for nurses to key and discern those types of signs and symptoms presented as possible child/elderly abuse. The rate of elderly abuse is set to surpass child abuse cases given that the United States is an aging nation. The nursing faculty should leverage the resources available such as a checklist to help determine neglect and suspected abuse. The majority of cases of abuse go unreported owing to the inability or fear of the victims to report their situation. Different states have variation from the federal regulations regarding handling abuse cases. The nurses are central in the fight against dependent abuse.