Elder abuse

1586 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Can elder abuse be an ethical issue

Elder Abuse

Elder abuse has been present in our society in the past times; however, it has been the hidden problem and under recognized by our community. It is really challenging for people to understand the severity of this problem unless one encountered it in one’s life. Society began to really acknowledge this issue because of the cases that have been reported. There are varieties of categories of elder abuse that are reportable to a healthcare provider; however, many cases are still left unreported and elder victims continue to suffer from mistreatment. The seniors that surround us have contributed to our community and to the great things that we now have. These people should be recognized and protected in all areas of life instead of being mistreated and left behind. Elder abuse is a social problem because it violates the ethical principles, standards of practice, and the legislature.

In our society we have been taught from a young age to respect our elders and treat them with dignity and respect. Those who should be the most honored end up being one of the most vulnerable populations and a group of people that require special attention and care. These people require skilled nursing care and support from family and friends. Regardless of the abuse, it would lead to the needless suffering, pain, and violations of human rights. Elder abuse violates the principles of ethics; some of them are justice, autonomy, and nonmalificence.

When dealing with older adults the caregivers are required to provide a fair treatment. The caregiver who stands in trust relationship to the resident cannot intentionally cause any harm or neglect. For the residents to be treated in a fair way, health providers must appropriately provide care to...

... middle of paper ...

...aveman, B. (2006). Perceptions of elder abuse: voices of professionals and volunteers in Sweden -- an exploratory study. Scandinavian Journal Of Caring Sciences, 20(2), 151-159

American Nurses Association. (November 15, 2010). Code of Ethics for Nurses with Interpretive Statements. In Nursing World. Retrieved March 30, 2012, from http://www.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/EthicsStandards/CodeofEthicsforNurses/Code-of-Ethics.pdf.

CCERAP. (2011). About Elder Abuse. In Colorado Coalition for Elder Rights and Abuse Prevention. Retrieved March 27, 2012, from http://www.ccerap.org/index.php/about-elder-abuse.

National Institute of Justice. (Novembeer 6, 2007). Elder Abuse. In National Institute of Justice. Retrieved April 1, 2012, from http://www.nij.gov/topics/crime/elder-abuse/welcome.htm.http://www.ncea.aoa.gov/main_site/pdf/publication/FinalStatistics050331.pdf

Show More
Related

  • Elder Abuse Rhetorical Analysis

    1727 Words  | 4 Pages

    Some of these cases of abuse are done in elderly homes by family members. In the first section of the article, the authors discuss the definition of elder abuse. The authors began with the most common types of elder abuse, which are physical and neglect. Elder abuse is the intentional use of physical force that results in acute or chronic illness, bodily injury, physical pain, functional impairment, distress, or death (Choi NG & Mayer J. In summary, the rhetorical analysis essay discusses how elder abuse and neglect affect the victims physically, emotionally, and professionally.

    Read More

  • The Assisted Living Facilities Abuse

    1578 Words  | 4 Pages

    Assisted Living Facilities abuse is a frequently occurring problem in our society (Hamilton). There are diverse categories of abuse that transpire in Assisted Living Facilities which are physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, neglect, abandonment, and financial abuse. Samples of physical abuse would be hitting or beating the elders with an object or their hand, force feeding them or pulling their hands. Sexual abuse is the Assisted Living Facility employees having sexual acts with non-consenting patients. Emotional abuse is the employees saying things verbally to torment the patient. Neglect would be the employee does not take care of the patients such as providing hygiene. Abandonment occurs when leaving patients to fend for themselves. Financial abuse is when the patient’s family pays for the services that were not taken care of. “Elder abuse is fast becoming one of the uppermost law enforcement tasks of the next century, “said Paul Hodge who investigates crime against the elderly (Gonzalez). Since abuse occurs throughout assisted living facilities, state and federal governments should establish a type of punishment such as sending for employees to prison, ways to prevent abusing elderly’s is by inspecting employees ' criminal records, qualified staff, reporting injuries, having surveillance of the areas that do not affect patients privacy, promoting continuous family visits, and shortage of staffing.

    Read More

  • Financial Abuse of the Elderly

    1227 Words  | 3 Pages

    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 purposes of this paper, this writer will focus solely on financial abuse. When one considers the definition of financial abuse, it is deemed to be a misuse of another individual’s finances for ones own monetary gain. Thus, this type of abuse has become the most common and fastest growing form of all. As such, it is important for all nurses to understand financial abuse and who is at risk, how it presents, and what can be done to prevent it in order to protect the elderly.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Five Days At Memorial

    1020 Words  | 3 Pages

    Winland-Brown, J. L. (2015). The New "Code of Ethics for Nursing With Interpretive Statements". Practical Clinical Applications Part I. MEDSURG Nursing 24(4),

    Read More

  • The Pros And Cons Of Elder Abuse

    1087 Words  | 3 Pages

    Did you know that, according to the National Institute of Justice website, “There are few reliable national measures of elder abuse. This is partially because there is no uniform reporting system for elder abuse in the U.S.” ("Extent of Elder Abuse Victimization," 2015). It is sad that, in a country as developed as ours, we have no standard way of reporting elder abuse.

    Read More

  • The Ethical Dilemma of Assisted Suicide for Nurses

    863 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Code of Ethics for Nurses was created to be a guide for nurses to perform their duties in a way that is abiding with the ethical responsibilities of the nursing profession and quality in nursing care. The Code of Ethics has excellent guidelines for how nurses should behave, however; these parameters are not specific. They do not identify what is right and wrong, leaving nurses having to ultimately make that decision. Ethics in nursing involves individual interpretation based on personal morals and values. Nursing professionals have the ethical accountability to be altruistic, meaning a nurse who cares for patients without self-interest. This results in a nurse functioning as a patient advocate, making decisions that are in the best interest of the patient and practicing sound nursing ethics.

    Read More

  • The American Nurses Association

    1115 Words  | 3 Pages

    Fowler, M. D., & American Nurses Association (2008). Guide to the code of ethics for nurses: Interpretation and application. Silver Spring, MD: American Nurses Association.

    Read More

  • Nursing Home Abuse

    1086 Words  | 3 Pages

    With over 1.5 million elderly and dependent adults now living in nursing homes throughout the country, abuse and neglect has become a widespread problem. Even though some nursing homes provide good care, many are subjecting helpless residents to needless suffering and death. Most residents in nursing homes are dependent on the staff for most or all their needs such as food, water, medicine, toileting, grooming- almost all their daily care. Unfortunately, many residents in nursing homes today are starved, dehydrated, over-medicated, and suffer painful pressure sores. They are often isolated, ignored and deprived of social contact and stimulation. Because of insufficient and poorly trained staff commonly found in nursing homes. Care givers are often overworked and grossly underpaid that often results in rude and abusive behavior to vulnerable residents who beg them for simple needs such as water or to be taken to the bathroom.

    Read More

  • Missouri's Mandated Reporting of Elder Abuse

    897 Words  | 2 Pages

    Elder abuse is a very sad reality. With an understanding of what the term elder abuse encompasses, who is at risk, what the warning signs are, the statutes that are there to protect the elderly, who is mandated to report the abuse, and how to report the abuse, it is important to minimize the crime. As with all things, the most important way to prevent something from happening is to educate, and elder abuse is no different. If care takers had education about the numerous resources there are, such as support groups and counseling, elder abuse could possibly be decreased exponentially.

    Read More

  • ANA Code of Ethics Provision Five Review

    885 Words  | 2 Pages

    American Nurses Association (ANA), (2001), Code of Ethics for Nurses, American Nurses Association, Washington, D.C.

    Read More

  • Elder Abuse: A Growing Threat in the Boomer Generation

    2008 Words  | 5 Pages

    Every American should have the right to live free from the fear of abuse. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always happen. The National Center on Elder Abuse Administration on Aging (NCEA) stated, “In the United States, the 2010 Census recorded the greatest number and proportion of people age 65 and older in all of decennial census history: 40.3 million, or 13% of the total population. This “Boomer Generation” effect will continue for decades”. This suggests that with the population of elders increasing, the abuse of elders will grow much higher. Elder abuse if defined as intentionally causing harm to a vulnerable elder by a caregiver or someone they trust. There are five main types of abuse; Physical, sexual, neglect, emotional or psychological

    Read More

  • Elderly Abuse and Neglect

    1403 Words  | 3 Pages

    In addition, just like with children, this dependency can lead to abuse and/or neglect. There has been an increase in the number of elderly people that have been subjected to violence and mistreatment. This type of treatment is associated with the individual’s dependency on others, whether it be a relative, acquaintance and/or institution (Meadows, 2010). According to estimates “between 1 and 2 million Americans aged 65 years or older have been injured, exploited, or otherwise mistreated by someone on whom they depended for protection (National Research Council Panel to Review Risk and Prevalence of Elder Abuse and Neglect, 2003)” (Meadows, 2010, p. 87).

    Read More

  • Abuse Of Elder Abuse

    1489 Words  | 3 Pages

    Abuse is a deliberate action and will always violate an individual’s rights. Most abuse happens in the home setting, which is where a majority of caregiving occurs. Elder abuse can also take place in institutional settings such as retirement homes, hospice care and long-term care facilities. The majority of abusers are actually spouses or adult children, but is not limited to grandchildren and other members of family or community (Robinson, de Benedictis & Segal, 2013). The most common types of elder mistreatment are physical, verbal, emotional, psychological, or sexual. There are circumstances where financial exploitation and medical abuse are also seen.

    Read More

  • Essay On Code Of Ethics In Nursing

    1326 Words  | 3 Pages

    The American Nurses Association created guidelines for the profession including, a set clear rules to be followed by individuals within the profession, Code of Ethics for Nurses. Written in 1893, by Lystra Gretter, and adopted by the ANA in 1926, The Code of Ethics for Nurses details the role metaethics, normative ethics, and applied ethics have within the field (ANA, 2015). Moral obligation for an individual differs within professions than it does within an individual’s personal life, so the code of ethics was written to establish rules within the profession. The moral obligation to provide quality care include the fundamental principles of respect for persons, integrity, autonomy, advocacy, accountability, beneficence, and non-maleficence. The document itself contains nine provisions with subtext, all of which cannot be addressed within this paper however, core principals related to the ethical responsibilities nurses have will be

    Read More

  • Nursing Code of Ethics

    1354 Words  | 3 Pages

    NSNA (2003). Code of ethics for nursing students Part I: Code of professional conduct. Retrieved June26, 2011, from: http//www.nsnsa.orgpdf/pubs_CodeofProfessionalConduct.pdf

    Read More

More about Elder abuse

Open Document