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Essay on elder abuse underreported
Causes and consequences of elderly abuse
Elder abuse in our society
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Video surveillance systems are quickly becoming an affordable and efficient way to ensure vulnerable seniors stay safe when in the care of others, whether it is an in-home caretaker, nursing home, hospital or other type of managed care facility. A granny cam can also provide a clear picture of how an elderly person is getting along on their own, or it can capture mistreatment.
Most experts estimate between 1 million and 2 million elderly Americans have experienced abuse or neglect. However, the Senate Special Committee on Aging believes the number of victims may actually be closer to 5 million, which means five additional cases may exist for every one reported. According to the National Center on Elder Abuse [http://www.ncea.aoa.gov], physicians and other healthcare professionals are involved in 21.6 percent of reported cases, while family members are the perpetrators nearly 15 percent of the time and service providers are involved 9.4 percent of the time.
People suffering from dementia, as well as women and those with physical disabilities, are the most likely victims of caregiver abuse and neglect. Depression, lack of a social support system, verbal or physical aggression, substance abuse as well as fear of institutionalization and loss of independence are just a few of the numerous barriers that prevent the reporting of elder abuse.
As technology improves, many families are turning to granny cams as a way to prove their suspicions. According to a report on the WBAL evening news [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YEuivTYI64&feature=player_embedded] in Baltimore, Jaki Taylor used a granny cam to capture images of an in-home caregiver repeatedly abusing her father, a stroke victim. In New York, 22 nursing home healthcare...
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...versy, granny cams just may change the future of how older adults live out their elderly years. The installation of surveillance equipment is primarily an issue of suspicions, and because this strategy is an invasion of privacy and dignity, it should be used as a last resort to confirm those suspicions and gather evidence.
Further Reading and Resources:
To Watch or Not to Watch? Elder Web [http://www.elderweb.com/book/export/html/3001]
Securing the Elderly Body: Dementia, Surveillance, and the Politics of “Aging in Place” [http://www.surveillance-and-society.org/articles5(3)/elderly.pdf]
How at Risk for Abuse are People with Dementia? UC Irvine Center of Excellence on Elder Abuse and Neglect [http://www.centeronelderabuse.org/docs/PwDementia_Factsheet.pdf]
National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse [http://www.preventelderabuse.org/]
I feel body cameras will bring more awareness to police departments when it comes to the honesty in their staff’s action when they are unsupervised. They can be used as hard evidence in court rooms, to help make the correct judgment on the situations in question. A case of which Officer Michael Slager fell victim to when the courts later changed their verdict after being presented with a video of what really happened.
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.
Gainey, R. R., & Payne, B. K. (2006). Caregiver Burden, Elder Abuse and Alzheimer's Disease: Testing the Relationship. Journal of Health and Human Services Administration , 29, 245-259.
care to the residents suffering from dementia. Banner et al (2009 as cited in Lee J.et al.2012)
Everyone has an aging relative or knows an elderly citizen in their community that they care about. Now imagine, if you found out that this person was being abused, you would certainly want to know how to prevent or stop this abuse. That is what I will be talking about today: what elder abuse is? and how to spot the signs of abuse, prevent it, and educate others.
While both dash cams and body mounted cams record interactions between police and citizens, “dash cam- eras are confined to places where cars can go, which are usually public places, such as roads and parking lots. A dash camera cannot easily record inside people’s homes and other places where there is a heightened expectation of privacy”(Freund 97). Thus, allowing body mounted cameras to record the more private aspects of a law enforcement related situations. Also “unlike body-mounted cameras, CCTV cameras do not record conversations”(Freund 98).This could deter people from going to the police when they witness a crime, because they are afraid of being exposed to the person who committed the crime, giving them the information needed if they choose to retaliate. Ebi, Kevin states that “sensitive information can 't get out if it 's never recorded in the first place,” so, if there is a distress call made to the police for help, there won’t be concern that the person in distresses voice, face or the inside of their home could end up on YouTube ("Body Of
...how kindness to them. Unfortunately, many caregivers take advantage of the elderly by taking their money, by using violence and sexual interference, and by abusing clients emotionally. 96% of elder abuse cases are not reported. ( Medscape.com). The Ontario Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse (ONPEA) is an organization dedicated to raising awareness about abuse and neglect of older abuse. (onpea.com). It stands to reason that there is a large problem still rampant in society where others are taken advantage of, or mistreated. Hopefully more documented information and raising awareness of the issue amongst society will allow more people to understand this as a problem and the abusers to be caught. These obvious abuse of rights are something that should be protected, luckily people become more aware of these circumstances that is happening on a regular basis.
People with dementia may be subject to mistreatment and abuse in the community or in care homes and hospitals. Those with dementia can be more vulnerable to abuse as they may find it difficult to discuss their feelings and experiences or remember what happened to them. Dementia can also make it harder to detect abuse.
Nursing Home Abuse 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.
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.
Elder abuse 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 or distress to an older person or violates their human and civil rights” (UCD and HSE 2012). It is inappropriate actions against an older person that harms them and defys them in any way and violates them as a human being. The forms of abuse can be physical, sexual. psychological, financial or material abuse , neglect on acts of commission or discriminatory abuse.(UCD and HSE 2012). There are different kinds of abuse and abusing patterns that can happen to an elder person such as Long-term abuse, Opportunistic abuse, Situational abuse, Neglect of a person’s needs, Institutional abuse, Unacceptable forms of ‘treatments’ which include acts of punishment, racist and discriminatory practice, failure to get access to key services such as health care or any other forms of care. Mishandling of benefits or Fraud or intimidation in connection with wills, property ...
It can happen at home, in a nursing home, or even in public. Robinson, Saisan and Segal stated, “Sadly, two of the most common sources of elder abuse are abuse by a primary caregiver – often an adult child – and self-neglect.” Abuse happens every day. Many times, people suspect that their family member is abusing a loved one but are to ashamed to report it. Robinson, Saisan and Segal emphasize, “Everyone deserves to live with dignity and respect. The earlier you intervene in a situation of elder abuse, the better the outcome will be for everyone involved.” Another type or abuse that many tend to ignore is self-neglect. The Health and Wellness Resource Center reports, “Self-neglect is failing to preform essential, self-care tasks, to an extent that threatens personal health and safety.” Most times, the self-neglect is unintentional because the elder will refuse any type of help. “He or she may be in denial, feel ashamed about needing help, or worried about having to leave home. Don’t stop checking with the older adult, even if you are being brushed off…Sometimes a peer or neutral party, such as a geriatric care manager, may have a better chance or getting through.” When an elder refuses help one cannot force them to do something they don’t want to, but it is good to keep asking them if they want help so that when they do need help they are aware that someone is there for
There are some major upsides in having cameras in public places. In early 2013 two people set off bombs at the Boston marathon, which killed several people and injured hundreds. The city of Boston had cameras monitoring the streets, and was able to identify the bombers within two days. (La Vigne, Nancy) The FBI was able to catch them before they were able to carry out another planned attack in Times Square, which could have been much, more devastating. In addition to being able to solve crimes that have already happened by using cameras, we are also able to use them and the other technologies that go with it to prevent crime. The National Security Agency has reported that it has prevented several terrorist attacks since 2001 using new technology put in place to prevent the attacks. However, much of the NSA’s tactics have been criticized lately, though the majority of people still agree that it is worth it. Using cameras is also a cheap way to monitor an area. Having to employ several police officers to patrol an area can be expensive and those officers could be out doing more important jobs. When you have cam...
This will all change in the future, now that the media and privacy advocates are starting to ask questions. Law enforcement security cameras clearly have many benefits to our society, and with the right policies in place the negative aspects will pale in comparison. Works Cited Kelly, Heather. " After Boston: The Pros and Cons of Surveillance Cameras. " CNN.com - "The 'Casino'" Cable News Network, 26 Apr. 2013.
Since surveillance cameras have been invented for security reasons at shopping malls and stores they have also been place in public areas such as stoplights, parking lots, hallways, bus stops, and more.