Elderly Neglect Essay

Elderly abuse in nursing homes in America is an uprising issue. Elders make up a large portion of our population and they deserve the equality. This issue is very important because eventually this could affect you personally, or a loved one in your family. I stand for better environments in these nursing homes and find it terrible that elders get treated so poorly. The reason the number of reports on elder abuse has gone up so rapidly in the past decade is because the number of elders has drastically risen. There is an increase in the number of elders not only because Americans are living longer than ever before, but also because the next generation of senior citizens is larger than ever before. It has been predicted

The horrors found inside these marketed homes for the elderly are unbelievable and essentially horrifying. Berens states, “[T]he Times uncovered scores of cases in which elderly victims were imprisoned in their rooms, roped into their beds at night, strapped to chairs during the day so they wouldn’t wander off, drugged into submission or denied medical treatment for weeks” (24). Not only are these elderly victims being tricked, scammed, and completely cheated into getting put in these homes, but they are also being abused. Senior citizens are supposed to be respected, not treated like something less than human; even animals do not deserve to be treated the way the elderly in care homes are most of the time. To go further, Berens informs that an organization called A Place for Mom, a company that assists in finding your elderly loved one a wonderful home, “rakes in tens of millions of dollars a year. The Times found that the company’s referral list contained an adult home with more violations than any other home, a place where a woman had died of an untreated pressure sore”

When you hear the words, “Nursing Home”, what comes to mind? Sad, helpless, elderly individuals? The smell of urine? An overall, unpleasant place to reside in? Unfortunately, this generic description is accurate amongst majority of the nursing home facilities across the United States. More often than not, the elderly suffer from inhumane living conditions while residing in a nursing facility. Quite often we hear stories on the news about cases of elder abuse in the nursing home and we automatically think physical, mental, or emotional abuse from caregivers. However, the fact that these individuals are also living amongst unsanitary, inhumane conditions, and ran by a staff that includes

Sexual abuse (at 0.05%) was the least common type of reported abuse (Duncan, 2010). In the US, the Adult Protective Services Agency deals with all reports of elder abuse and neglect, but it is estimated that only one in ten cases is actually reported (Mauk 2006). Nurses play a crucial role in insuring all cases of suspected abuse are reported. “...any incident of abuse or suspected abuse, or ongoing abusive situations should be reported to the line manager immediately” (HSE 2005, pg5). Nurses are the ideal advocates for vulnerable older people. Nurses should be cognisant of the reality of elder abuse and realise their place in influencing health and social policy to protect the older adult.

There are many broad and different definitions of elder abuse, and different forms and ways to deal with it. Elder abuse consists of “intentional or neglectful acts of a caregiver, family member, friend, or other individuals that lead to, or may lead to, harm of a senior citizen” (Elder Abuse Facts, 2016). One of the biggest problems we face when looking at this policy is that elder harm and abuse can happen practically anywhere. Elder abuse can happen in a private setting; in their own homes committed by their own family members (Help Guide, 2014, p.1). But it can also happen in a care center, with lots of people living in close proximity to them.

One thing every living organism has in common on this planet-- age. No one wants to age or face the fact that aging is inevitable. However, since it’s impossible to beat the never ending time clock that is life; everyone wants to be as comfortable as possible when age finally does catch up with them. When the majority of people think of comfortability in old age, they think of living in their own homes and being surrounded by their loved ones. Not many individuals want to be placed into a nursing home type facility because they can’t imagine themselves being comfortable that way. Nonetheless, even though being placed in a home does take away some of an elderly person’s independence, usually the independence lost is in activities that person can no longer do for themselves. Indeed, nursing homes do have their own set of scary stories behind them; life lost, independence lost, and privacy lost, yet many of those stories are outdated. Upon investigation, it would be easy for anyone to scare themselves out of a nursing facility due to the stories that are out there. Yet, upon even further research people would be able to see how far the United States has come in their development and evolution of nursing care facilities. The care of the elderly in the form of nursing homes has faced a tough evolution starting off with a harsh past, to what nursing homes are like now, and what people can expect for the future of these homes.

Are nursing homes abusing and neglecting the elderly? The elderly are abused and neglected in society today by caregivers in nursing homes. Elder abuse or neglect is a single or repeated action occurring within any relationship where there is an overlook of trust which causes injury or distress to an older person.

One way elder abuse or elder mistreatment can be defined is, “intentional actions that cause harm or create a serious risk of harm, whether or not intended, to a vulnerable elder by a caregiver or other person who stands in a trust relationship to the elder” (Bonnie & Wallace). There are seven main forms of elder abuse which include emotional, physical, psychological, sexual, financial, neglect, abandonment, and self-neglect (Cohen, Levin, Gagin & Friedman, 2007; Fulmer, 2008; Thompson & Priest, 2005). Even though only 6.2% of victims are abused in long-term care settings, my experience of witnessing neglect and abandonment are very serious (Teaster et al., 2006).

Bruises and skin tears could be a sign of abuse. Elderly people often develop thin skin that tears and bruises easily when it is handled with too much pressure. Restraint marks around the waist, chest, or wrists should be cause for alarm as those are signs your loved one is being tied down tightly. Broken bones, even if from a fall, should be investigated as those could indicate your loved one was not supervised as needed. If you see signs of physical abuse, you'll want to get help right away. This could even involve calling the police to investigate.

In the Journal of JAMA, Volume 302: Issue no. 5 published on August 5 2009 Elder Self-neglect and Abuse and Mortality Risk in a Community-Dwelling Population. The authors: X. Dong, MD, Melissa Simon, MD, Mph, Carols Mendes de Leon, PhD, Terry Fulmer, PhD, RN, Todd Beck, MS, Liesi Herbert, ScD, Carmel Dyer, MD, Gregory Paveza PhD, MSW, Denis Evans, MD argue that both elder self-neglect and abuse is becoming more clear in regards to public health concerns, and that elder self-neglect or abuse is linked with mortality and not just on those that were vulnerable. In addition, that both elder neglect and abuse reported to social agencies there was an increased risk of mortality (Dong et al., 2009, p. 517).

Is it worth putting your loved ones in a nursing home facility? According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Each year, hundreds of thousands of adults over the age of 60 are abused, neglected, or financially exploited.” Family members of an elderly person might assume that because they are paying such a large amount of money for assistance and a room in the facility, that they’re getting the best treatment and care for their relative. Although one might believe their loved ones would be better off in a nursing home, they might be putting them at a greater risk of abuse due to understaffing, lack of training within the staff, neglect, nurse burnout, and low wages. 2,150,000 cases

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,

As the healthcare system in this country has changed, so have traditional nursing homes. Families have the right to expect that their loved ones will be taken care of by professionals in a caring environment. Unfortunately, may people are being abused and neglected in nursing homes. It is very clear that abuse is a serious problem among nursing home patients, and something needs to be done to put a stop to it.

There are many types of abuse that occur in nursing homes, even though many do not even realize what all could be classified as abuse. When hearing abuse what is probably most thought of is physical abuse. It was reported that for elderly women with

For instance, the women that I have helped live by themselves without support for their families. The U.S. Census Bureau indicates that between 80 to 90 percent of care comes from spouses and family members (Sherr & Ellor). Spouses and family members have loving and trusting relationship that allows the elder family member to appreciate the support that they are providing them. Furthermore, Pope Francis states, “The elderly need the care of family members – whose affection cannot be replaced by the most efficient structures or the most competent and charitable healthcare workers” (Harris). However, taking care of a loved one becomes a burden and family members try their best to provide support. It is a challenge for a caregiver to help their older family member and take care of their own family. In some cases, they forgo their personal lives to care for their family members. The high stress levels and low options of support can lead to abuse or neglect of the older family member. Especially if the elder family member’s health is not increasing with the service that their family is providing them, then that family member is going to get frustrated and not continue to help their elder family member. Thus in some cases, families will send their parents or grandparents to nursing homes and senior citizen homes for care and they may be abused by their nurses or