Imagine your loved one being the victim of abuse. Greta’s family is experiencing firsthand what it’s like for their loved one be a victim of abuse. Greta is a 70 year old resident of Blue Meadows Care. John, a CNA, has complications at home, he comes to work on edge, every day. Greta begins to lose her memory and experience behavior problems. Therefore, John becomes irritated with her, taking his frustrations at home out on her, physically. Betty, a CNA, witnesses John smacking Greta. Betty then goes to her Director of Nursing, to report this behavior. A couple days later, John is still abusing, Greta. The family of Greta starts to notice dramatic changes in weight, personality changes, and she quits going to the activities, she once enjoyed. These actions keep occurring and no one says anymore, so Greta keeps declining in health. Even though there may not be enough resources to provide proper training, abuse should be taken more seriously because caregivers need better training regarding abuse and abuse needs to be reported to prevent this behavior from happening again.
Abuse does not necessarily mean physical abuse (hitting, scratching, pulling hair, etc.). Other types of abuse include sexual, neglect, exploitation, emotional, abandonment, and self-neglect.
Sexual abuse refers to sexual contact of any kind without permission. Refusing to feed someone, provide healthcare, or any necessities to live would be neglect. Illegal taking or misuse of the elder’s property, referred to as exploitation. Emotional abuse would be if the elder were humiliated, threatened, or insulted (verbally or nonverbally). Deserting of an elder, by a person caring for them, abandonment.
While visiting loved ones in a facility or at home there are warnin...
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...er care to the aged have an obligation in preventing and reporting abuse. Unfold the message concerning how severe, dangerous, and degrading abuse is. Additional people whom become educated about abuse and how to prevent abuse, the lower the chance of abuse occurring.
Works Cited
11 facts about elder abuse. Retrieved from http://www.dosomething.org/tipsandtools/11-facts-elder-abuse
Administration of Aging. Retrieved from http://www.aoa.gov/AoA_programs/Elder_Rights/EA_Prevention/whatIsEA.aspx
Greenlee, K (2012) Take a Stand against Elder Abuse Generations, 36(3) 6-8
Robinson, L., de Benedictis, T., & Segal, J. Retrieved from http://www.helpguide.org/mental/elder_abuse_physical_emotional_sexual_neglect.htm
Retrieved from http://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/aps/apsseldm.htm http://www.ncea.aoa.gov/ http://aoa.gov/AoARoot/AoA_Programs/Elder_Rights/YEAP/index.aspx
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.
So how can we spot, educate, and prevent elderly abuse? I am so glad you
Rodríguez, M. A., Wallace, S. P., Woolf, N. H., & Mangione, C. M. (2006). Mandatory reporting of elder abuse: Between a rock and a hard place. Annals of Family Medicine, 4(5), 403-409. doi:10.1370/afm.575
According to Daly, Schmeidel Klein, & Jogerst, (2012), when dealing with abuse issues, nurses need to be aware of reasons why an older person may not want to report abuse and take this into consideration when soliciting information. Then, nurses can provide adequate information and resources to the older adult that may help them deal with the abuse. In addition, since elder abuse is perpetrated by family members, caregivers, and other individuals, the most effective method to eliminate elder abuse is to promote elder abuse awareness in private homes and nurse care setting to education individuals about elder abuse, signs of elder abuse and hence improve their relationship with the older individuals. Patients should also be educated on elder abuse, their civil rights and how to seek help when they experience abuse. Nurses play a huge role in detecting elder-abuse especially during patient assessment. Furthermore, in support of nursing education, Muehlbauer & Crane argues
What is Abuse? Abuse is not just being hit. Abuse is any action that is harmful or controlling and that affects the well being of another person. Many people use the term "Abuse" to signify physical abuse, but there are many more ways of abusing someone than beating them. Physical abuse is the most horrifying and most noticeable of them all, but it is only one of the many types of abuse. Here are some of the names for different categories of abuse: Physical abuse, Sexual abuse, Psychological and Verbal abuse, Forced confinement, abuse towards pets or property, Financial abuse, and Child abuse. The two abuses that I will be focusing on will be physical and mental abuse.
...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.
Of nursing home staff interviewed in 2004, nearly 40% admitted to committing at least one psychologically abusive act toward a resident and 10% admitted to physically abusing a resident in the preceding year.[1] Not only are nursing home residents at risk of being abused by their caretakers but they are also at risk of being restrained, which may lead to a form of abuse. With five percent of the elderly population, or one to two million instances of elder abuse occurring yearly there is no doubt that elder abuse deserves serious consideration.[2]
Though elderly abuse occurs in many nursing homes, it is preventable. It is the nursing aide 's responsibility to provide quality and comfortable care, free from abuse. Many people are not aware that there are several other types of abuse in addition to physical abuse and many are not aware of the signs. If abuse should occur, anyone who suspects or witnesses the abuse is responsible for reporting it. Knowing the types of abuse, being aware of the signs, and reporting incidents are all ways to prevent abuse in nursing homes.
As noted by Statistics Canada (2013), the number of older adults will more than triple by 2031, thus the number of cases of elder abuse will likely increase in alignment. With this notion in mind, it seems ostensive that nurses must develop a decent understanding of what it entails, including identification of those who may be most vulnerable. Financial abuse involves the unauthorized use and or procurement of an older adults wealth (Gibson & Honn Qualls, 2012, p. 26). It is interesting to not...
Now, you can see that Nursing Home abuse is a big problem in America. You might want to get involved in our local program against nursing home abuse. I will leave you with one last statistic, 1 out of every 8 nursing home patients are abused in some way. Wouldn’t you like to help them?
There has been an increase in the number of elderly 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 case or protection (National Research Council Panel to Review Risk and Prevalence of elder abuse and neglect, 2003)” (Meadows, 2010, p. 87). The type of abuse that elderly get subjected to is not only physical, it may also be emotional. Obviously, abuse may take on many different forms and may include: financial abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse, and neglect. This abuse is not limited to certain circumstances it can happen in poor, middle-class or upper income household. This includes a variety of demographs and ethnicities (Meadows, 2010). Anyone may potential cause abuse and/or neglect.
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
Elderly abuse should be a crime that is made into a law. Once someone create the act of abusing an elderly, they should be taken into custody to be taken to jail. Elderly abuse is crucial and people should understand they are human beings. Financial abuse is one of the worst abuses in assisted living facilities. Everythin...
There are currently two important pieces of legislation that address elder abuse issues. The Older Americans Act must submit to a reauthorization process every five years. Throughout the years there have been many adaptations to the act. Presently, there are four sections that apply to elder abuse primarily in the form of research processes, grant eligibili...
The elders of this generation are more active, more involved, and more independent than in the past. Today, they are living healthier and longer lives. However, even though the population of older Americans rises, so does the occurrence of elder abuse and neglect.