Introduction
Elderly abuse is a broad term that describes various harmful experiences subjected to older adults. Elderly abuse can also mean senior abuse, abuse of older adults and elder mistreatment. Both older women and men can undergo repeated or single harm or inappropriate actions towards them. This usually causes distress and harm to them. The elderly adults expect trust towards the abuser for he/ she is not a stranger. The abuser might be a friend, family member, spouse and caregivers. Elderly abuse is categorized under family or domestic violence.
It is important to note that elder abuse does not imply to any criminal act done against older persons like burglary and house break-in where by the elder’s property is stolen. Since 2006, the International Network for Prevention Of elderly Abuse (INPEA) has been raising global awareness by highlighting ways of preventing elderly abuse and recognizing the presence of incidences of elderly abuse. The INPEA designated June 15th as the World Elder Abuse Awareness Day.
Statement of Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present the various types of elderly abuse, the signs of abuse, who the common abusers are, the statistics of abused elders and places where one can find help.
Types of abuse
Physical abuse
Elderly abuse has been characterized by physical harm and force that leads to impairing an older adult. Many sorts of physical actions and violence like overmedicating, burning, pulling, pushing and beating are forms which physically injure an adult. Other forms are forcing an elderly person to eat and falling to provide medication (National Center on Elder Abuse, 1998). Physical abuse on the elderly can also include sexual abuse in which the elderly person is incapable of giving consent such as taking sexually explicit photos or coerced nudity. Physical abuse generally causes physical and mental harm elderly people.
Mental abuse
Any abuse which inflicts distress, pain and anguish are forms of mental abuse. For example, isolation of an elderly person from the people he loves like family members and friends. It also includes preventing an older adult from doing activities he/ she likes to do like listening to a certain song and other such activities. An older adult can be mentally abused through threats and verbal abuse which instills fear for the elder to request his / her needs leading to poor care and poor medical service
Financial abuse
Many elderly persons are usually targeted by close relatives and care-givers that have been entrusted by them to take care of their finances. Improper and illegal handling of the elder’s money is considered as financial abuse. Some may be threatened to sign cheque of large amounts of money against their will or some may even forge the signatures of the elderly old persons.
Neglect
Neglect is another common form of elder abuse like physical abuse. This is the refusal and failure of those responsible to care for the older person to fulfill the needs of the old person. Neglect my happen due to lack of interest in providing adequate care or the inability of members of the family. Questions have been raised concerning what responsibilities are required of people living with an older adult in the same home. They can be family care-givers or hired in-home service care providers. The neglect of older persons leads to poor medical care, psychological distress and poor physical hygiene. Care givers may intentionally neglect an older person or it may be due to lack of knowledge on how to properly provide care.
Theories/ Causes of elder abuse
Psychoanalysis, social exchange and factionalism theory have been used to explain elder abuse (Nadine, 1995, p177-199). Another theory that has been widely used to establish the causes of older adult abuse is the family stress theory (Steinmetz, 1998, p 100). These theories postulate that elderly abuse can be caused by various socially determining factors like difficulty in caring for an elderly person, an elders decision to enter into an abusers home because he / she has nowhere else to go. Abuse can also occur due to forced care of an elderly person against his or her will who may be a relative to the older person or may not be a relative. It may also happen in cases of extreme poverty where the people the older person lives with are incapable of providing medical and physical needs like food and clothing. Such members may have no time staying with the old person at home for they spend most part of the day looking for casual and odd jobs to earn a little money for food.
Situational theory explains the isolation that a caregiver feels with little emotional support which leads to abuse of the elderly person. The isolation and role theory focuses at persons who are spouses of the elderly person who may fail to understand why a spouse with mental problem or any other physical ailment. The healthy spouse may wonder why there is a sudden turn of life events leading to frustration, extreme stress and subsequent neglect of the partner.
Prevalence rate of elder abuse
Elderly people are victims of abuse especially from the caregivers who reside with them. Worldwide statistics have been conducted to determine the existence of elderly victimization. But most of these have given inaccurate statistics, just like any other ‘dark area’ of cases of victimization. This is because caregivers have threatened elderly people from reporting incidences of abuse.
The National Elder Abuse Incidence Study in 1996 estimated that 449,924 elderly persons aged sixty and above experienced neglect and abuse in domestic setting across twenty countries in only fifteen states (National Center on Elder Abuse 1998). Further findings indicated that as many as 701,000 to 1,093,560 elder adults are abused in United States (Pillemer &Finkelhoir, 1998, p 51-57)
In Canada 98, 000 to 137,000 are abused. This is according to findings by Podnieks in 1992. Elders experienced this abuse at the hands of their care-givers and close relatives even spouses. This problem of elderly abuse has gained recognition in the recent years in the USA despite it being in existence for decades. This came to be known after more incidents began to be reported than years before. Political measures have catered for the improvement of care to older adults. Boren Amendment has guarantees nursing homes with enough funding for the staff to provide adequate care to residents (Abuse 2001).
Warning signs of abuse
Signs and symptoms of elderly abuse range from grossly to subtle injuries. Professionals who care for the old should be well trained at evaluating these symptoms and signs which can help in the establishment and documentation of cases of adult abuse. Abandonment and physical abuses can both present in various symptoms and signs. Dissertation normally happens when older adults are left in hospitals, shopping center, nursing facility and various public palaces.
Bruises can be seen in an elderly person which if asked, he /she may fail to explain. These bruises may be at various stages of healing and may have regular patterns. They can be caused by bites or other objects which can be established with the shape of the bruises. The bruises may be at unusual locations like under the arms, inner thighs or on the buttocks. An elderly person may show discomfort in sitting down or when being dressed. Serious bruises may happen due to sexual abuse as presented in anal tearing, virginal bleeding and genitalia inching and pain.
Another symptom is burns caused by cigarettes, immersion burns, rope burns or iron burns. Fractures are another symptom which may be spiral or multiple. Sleeping disorders, obsessions, phobia, hysteria and hypochondria are the psychoneurotic reactions which and elderly abused person experiences. He/she may also experience speech disorders, antisocial and destructive disorders. An elderly person who has been abused may also suffer from habit disorders like biting, rocking or sucking. As an effect of physical neglect signs like poor hygiene, weight loss, inappropriate dressing, consistent hunger, urine burns, pressure sores, soiled clothing and overmedication will be seen (Fink, 2000, p 22-23)
Abusers
From the above discussion, it is apparent that the common abusers are people close or distant people to the elderly persons. They can be friends or neighbors, volunteer workers, spouse, partner, paid caregiver or a relative. These are people who can be trusted in the hands of the elderly persons whom majorities are close relatives. Some may establish closer relations in order to benefit from the old person’s finances. With the increase of ageing number of people today, it is important to be more comprehensive in providing the care and support needed by the older adults that should include proper training to the care givers so as to avoid the elderly being abused and neglected.
Where to seek help
The local Area Agencies AAA for the ageing has been in existence for last sixty years. The AAA number can be found in any directory on pages under Assault/Abuse. The national Center on Elder Abuse is the national resource center with the mandate and dedication of preventing mistreatment of the elderly persons in the community. It was first established in 1988 under the US Administration on the Aging. Later amendments were made in 1992 under the title 11 of the Old American Act. The National Committee for Prevention of Elder Abuse is an association of educators, practitioners, and advocates with a dedication of protecting the security, safety and dignity of Americans most vulnerable citizens. This association was also established in 1988.
Conclusion
Elder care is an important aspect in today America. The old people just like the children are the most vulnerable people in the society today. By first acknowledging that elders suffer at the hands of the care givers and relatives who are closely trusted, is the initial step of implementing working mechanism to ensure that the old are protected. Learning how to care for the old as well as how to evaluate symptoms and signs of abuse becomes crucial in ensuring that the older adults do not silently suffer at the hands of there abusers. It is therefore the responsibility of every individual to keep an eye to the old people around them and when there is suspicion of abuse one can help by visiting the above mentioned help centers or calling AAA.
Reference
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