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What is elder abuse?
Elder abuse may be domestic or institutional. Domestic elder abuse refers to maltreatment of an older person residing in his/her own home or the home of a caregiver. Institutional abuse refers to the maltreatment of an older person residing in a residential facility for older persons, e.g., a nursing home, board and care home, foster home, or group home
The four common kinds of elder abuse are:
(1) physical abuse, the infliction of physical pain or injury, e.g., slapping, bruising, sexually molesting, restraining;
(2) psychological abuse, the infliction of mental anguish, e.g., humiliating, intimidating, threatening;
(3) financial abuse, the improper or illegal use of the resources of an older person, without his/her consent, for someone else's benefit; and
(4) neglect, failure to fulfill a caretaking obligation to provide goods or services, e.g., abandonment, denial of food or health-related services.
Elder abuse is a serious problem affecting millions of older Americans every year, and experts estimate that only a small percentage of cases are ever discovered. Though institutional elder abuse does occur, most of the abuse is domestic, committed by family members or people close to the victim. This sometimes results from a continuation of abuse patterns in the family or because of the added stress of taking care of an extra family member who needs lots of attention.
All states provide laws prohibiting elder abuse, and most have state agencies, such as adult protective services, to help achieve compliance with those laws. Some states operate hotlines 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Criminal and financial penalties are generally provided.
There are people to help the victims of elder abuse, and there are people to help the perpetrators too, particularly when they are family members who can’t deal with the stress. If you are being abused, report it right away. If you suspect that an older person is being abused, get help for them (http://www.ncea.aoa.gov/NCEAroot/Main_Site/Find_Help/Help_Hotline.aspx). If you are being abusive or fear that you might become abusive, get help for yourself as quickly as you can. |
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