Patient Abuse Or Neglect

According to the National Center on Elder Abuse, elder abuse is a term referring to any knowing, intentional or negligent act by a caregiver or any other person that causes harm or a serious risk of harm to a vulnerable

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

The issue of elder abuse and neglect is a significant health care issue, that need to be brought to the attention of society. Seniors who stay at home or in nursing homes are at more risk. Nurses should be aware of the signs and symptoms as well as resources in the community. By having a better understanding of these issues, nurses can recognize problems and help prevent the devastating effects of elderly abuse.

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

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).

Each year there is an estimated 4 million elderly Americans that are victims of physical, psychological, or abused in other ways (Elder Abuse and Neglect: In Search of Solutions. (n.d.). Retrieved January 26, 2016, from http://www.apa.org/pi/aging/resources/guides/elder-abuse.aspx). There are some cases that get reported to the proper authorities and some cases that do not get reported at all. For the abused elderly people, their lives are put at risk and their health also declines. They feel helpless and lonely and have increased psychological distress and research has suggested that these victims die earlier than those who have not been abused (Elder Abuse and Neglect: In Search of Solutions. (n.d.). Retrieved January 26, 2016, from http://www.apa.org/pi/aging/resources/guides/elder-abuse.aspx).

An estimated twenty-one percent of nursing home residents are neglected at least once in the past twelve months and more than twenty-four percent are abused at least once during their entire stay (Schub & Kornusky, 2014). In a study of 718 family members and others responsible for those ages 60 and older receiving long-term care in a nursing home, an assisted living facility or paid homecare, nearly 30 percent reported at least one instance of elder abuse in the past year. Neglect was the most common form and sexual abuse the least (Anetzberger, 2012).

Elder mistreatment is a serious problem in America, yet it often overlooked. Elder abuse is defined as abuse in older adults that includes, but isn’t limited to physical, emotional, financial or sexual abuse. It is a single or repeated act or lack of appropriate action, occurring within any relationship where there is an expectation of trust, which causes harm. It is often misunderstood and dismissed as just a family matter when in fact, that is the least common source of cruelty amongst the elders. According to the National council of aging, 1 in 10 Americans aged 60 and older have experienced some form of abuse. Some estimates range as high as 5 million elders who are reportedly abused yearly.

The aging population is at high risk of being taken advantage of and mistreated by a caregiver or family member. Elders are the most vulnerable group of people and are subject to elder abuse in their later years of life. The Administration of Aging refers to elder abuse as the knowing, intentional, or negligent act that causes harm or serious risk of harm to a vulnerable adult. Every year, hundreds of thousands of older adults are abused, neglected, and exploited. Unfortunately, a trusted caregiver or a loved one commits most of these heinous acts.

According to a 2012 report by Statistic Brain (based on NCEA, Bureau of Justice Statistics), the number of elder abuse cases in 2010 was 9.5% of the elderly population. The percentages of elder abuse cases by types reported in (Watson, 2013). 2010 include: neglect (58.5%), physical abuse (15.7%), financial abuse (12.3%), psychological abuse (7.3%), sexual abuse (0.04%), all other types (5.1%), and unknown (0.06%) (Statistic Brain, 2012). Elder abuse occurs in private homes, long-term care facilities (nursing homes, assisted living facilities), and hospitals (Watson,

According to the National Center on Elder Abuse, there are seven types of elder abuse: physical abuse, sexual abuse, psychological abuse, financial exploitation, neglect, self-neglect, and abandonment” (Fischer, 2012, p. 102). “The American Medical Association defines elder abuse and/or neglect as ‘an act of commission or omission that results in harm or threatened harm to the health or welfare of an older adult’ whether intentional or unintentional” (Read, 2016, p. 32).

No one wants to believe that their loved one is being abused in a nursing home, but it is more common than you may think. Of course, there are different forms of abuse, but one common form of abuse is that of neglect. This is a problem found in many nursing homes and it can become serious that your loved one's health is in danger. The following are three signs that your loved one is being neglected.

There is a significant amount of reports on elderly abuse in America. An increasingly disproportionate amount of elderly people needs care and assistance to perform essential tasks like eating and drinking. However, families are not stepping up to help care for their elderly family members for different reasons. Some claim to be too busy with their own lives, others do not have the knowledge or skills needed to appropriately care their elderly family member or some simply do not aim to care for their elderly family members. Because of this many elderly people end up in elderly care facilities. These institutions are intended specifically to take care of people who cannot care for themselves or who cannot receive help from others while living

The mistreatment of older adults takes many forms, including physical, verbal, emotional and sexual abuse, financial exploitation, and neglect. According to the National Center on Elder Abuse, the number of older adults who are mistreated each year is close to 5 million and is

In today’s societies older populations have been forgotten, depreciated, and severely deprived of adequate healthcare resources, services, and funding (O'Brien, 2010). Issues involving insufficient healthcare policies, limited research, and lack of elderly abuse education has prevented geriatric patients from receiving proper care (O'Brien, 2010). With this in mind some research has shown high rates of physical abuse and negligence towards elderly patients in the healthcare facilities (Zhang, 2011). The Adult Protective Services (APS) explains that negligence is one of the most common types of domestic abuses reported (Zhang, 2011). As a matter of fact, reports of elderly abuse and neglect account for 60-70% of all reports submitted to the