How Healthcare Team Members ( Hctms ) Use The Adult Protective Services ( Aps ) System

Elder abuse includes physical, emotional, and sexual abuse as well as neglect, exploitation and abandonment of our older generation (Falk, 2012). The people that cause these injuries include the elderly person’s own family and staff members of nursing homes, assisted living facilities, medical rehabilitation facilities and hospitals (NCOA, 2017). There is approximately 1 in 10 older adults that have experienced some type of elder abuse in the United States (NCOA, 2017). Within these staggering numbers, only 1

The challenge America now faces is the number of people reaching retirement will double in number by 2030, and the U.S. population will increase almost 20 percent ("Our Aging Nation," 2015). The goal is for the elderly to maintain and live with independence and dignity, as well as, provide a wide range of professional health and social service expertise, home care, and residential support and services that will be needed ("Our Aging Nation," 2015). Since the number of caregivers needed for this population will not be able to meet the demands other resolutions are considered necessary.

The earliest study of Adult Protective Services was accomplished by Virginia Lehmann for the National Council on the Aging in 1960. The report was used as the foundation for a national conference held in 1963. As we can see from this statement elder abuse has been around for many years. Many times people don’t even realize how much elder abuse is a problem and how many different types of elder abuse there is.

Taking care of the individuals that are getting older takes many different needs. Most of these needs cannot be given from the help of a family. This causes the need of having to put your love one into a home and causing for the worry of how they will be treated. It is important for the family and also the soon to be client to feel at home in their new environment. This has been an issue with the care being provided for each individual, which has lead to the need of making sure individuals have their own health care plan.

Our elderly population is living longer than ever before and not all of them are entering into a nursing home. They are choosing to stay in their own home or their caregiver is choosing it for them. Some caregivers are choosing to move their ageing love one in the home with them. Whatever the case may be, there is an increased need for some type of home health as it applies to the elderly population. “Medicare will pay the full cost of professional help only if the physician

Mr. Henry and his wife need medical care coordinated throughout the health care system to receive proper treatment and prevent health complications, encouraging their independence by remaining in the same setting. Marek and Rantz highlight that by providing care coordination and health care services for older adults residing in specially designed senior apartments, older adults will not have to move from one level of care delivery to another as their health care needs increase; and they will have the opportunity to “age in place” (Marek & Rantz, 2000). Care coordination starts with a comprehensive assessment of each of Henry and Ertha individual needs for health and social support, and by developing an individualized plan of care for each of them. “Patients should be evaluated, and care plans should be designed and implemented according to the individual needs of each patient (American Geriatrics Society, 2012, p. 1966). As Mr. Henry and his wife health care needs increase, they can receive periodical physical examinations to monitor their underlying health problems, and for early detection of complications remaining in their apartment. This will prevent negative outcomes associated with relocation, and medications and treatment noncompliance.

Starla, I agree with your statement that the older adult is a part of the vulnerable population. I also agree that more resources need to be available to them with education and that this could aid in the reduction of hospital readmissions. One of the articles I summarized, Risk Assessment and Intervention for Older Adults (Culo, 2011), also said the older person may have ‘red flags’ such as repeat emergency room visits or admissions, putting off medical problems, and not taking prescriptions as directed. Frequent assessments for risks and home visits could curb their health care costs. There should also be more involvement from family if available.

Too often seniors refuse to report abuse, neglect, or crime against them out of fear of losing independence. It is a common misconception that being victimized will deem you unfit to live independently and will result in being placed in a facility of some sort. It is important that seniors feel they can turn to those around them with concerns and incidents that occur. In the event that a senior is not forthcoming with information there are a number of avenues that may involve reporting of suspected incidents. Hospitals, doctors, community service organizations, and long term care facilities can report suspected crimes to authorities or Department of Social Services in an effort to protect the individual. If a senior cannot properly protect themselves then health care professionals from all areas should have the ability to act on behalf of the individual to seek help but not dictate the overall outcome as a result. For example: simply finding that a person has been a victim of exploitation should not mean that a person be moved immediately into a facility forfeiting their right to care for themselves. All facilities acting to protect a senior should aim to preserve senior

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

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).

This scholarly journal looks at elderly abuse in general. It talks about different ways one can notice that the senior is being abused and what to do about the abuse. It also describes different reasons why the abusers abuse the elderly. It says how elderly abuse can be very difficult to notice and it is also difficult to help the seniors. The article then describes the difficulties that seniors have when they are abused. It talks a little about senior homes and how the elderly are treated by the nurses. It also gives some specific examples of abuse and the role of the government in this situation. This article is very opinionated and the author expresses her views on the topic very clearly.

Although this op-ed was written a while back I think the authors should have added more static to better state the point as to why family members should be entrusted with the well-care of the elderly individual. The author also fails to address the percentage of the elderly population who benefit for “institutionalization verse in-home care (Smyer&Plantz)”. C)

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,

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

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