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Elder
Abuse
This article was
published in The West End
Times June 25, 2011.
Providing
Home Care for the past 15 years has allowed us to share wonderful
experiences with families who have chosen to stay home with some
support.
Everyday we hear stories about how well people are doing well into
their
eighties and nineties. And then there is the scary
part…….June is senior’s
month and I wanted to see what is happening in Canada for seniors. I came across
the Government of Canada site marking Elder Abuse Awareness day. On
June 15,
our Government joined countries around the world to speak out against
“elder
abuse”.
Taking on many forms such as financial
exploitation, psychological and
physical abuse and neglect, it happens far too often says the
Honourable Alice
Wong, Minister of State (Seniors).
As Canada’s
population ages, the number of citizens over 65 years of age will
outnumber the
number of citizens under the age of 15 by 2015. This
shift in demographics means that an increasing number of people will be
put
into the position of caregiver for their parents even as they may be
caring for
their own family. Juggling these responsibilities may result in a great
deal of
stress. We need to think about how these changes will contribute to the
problem
of elder abuse.
Trend
data show that between 1998 and 2005, the overall rate
of police-reported violence against seniors increased 20%.
According
to police-reported data, senior males are more
likely than senior females to be victims of violent crime. In 2005,
senior men
experienced rates of violent crime that were 1.5 times higher than for
senior
women (172 versus 114 per 100,000).
And then there
is Financial abuse which is the misuse of an
older adult's money or belongings by a relative or a person in a
position
of trust by: forcing or tricking an older
adult into selling his or her house, stealing money or personal
belongings,
forging a signature on pension cheques or legal papers such as a will,
misusing
a power of attorney, not allowing an older person to buy needed clothes
or
equipment, forcing an older adult to do something, such as babysit or
share his or her house without paying for it. Delicious
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It is not
known how common this type of abuse is because it is not always
reported for many reasons such as
older adults may not know what to do when it happens, older adults do
not
report abuse because they feel shame, guilt or fear, and there are few
studies
on financial abuse. Financial Abuse can happen to any older adult. Here are some signs that financial abuse might be happening. More
information is needed to be sure that it is actually abuse.
- Large sums of money are taken from a
bank
account.
- Signatures
on cheques or other papers look
suspicious.
- The older person is in debt and does not know
why.
- Bank statements are no longer being sent to the
older person's home.
- The older person cannot buy food or personal
care items, or pay bills.
- The older person's will is unexpectedly changed.
- The older person's home is unexpectedly sold.
- Personal belongings, such as clothes or
jewellery, are missing from an
older person's home or room in an institution.
Many
of us have heard horror stories about a friend or relative or
something in the news about “right in your own backyard.”
The part of the home
care business that can keep me awake at night is that we are in older
peoples’
homes and most can be vulnerable. Follow-up and feedback are so
important to
us. I have recently been approached by a technical company since many
have
caught on that I have been testing and using technology in the homes
for
several years now. This technology involves cameras in the home. On one
level
this sounds like “Big Brother Watching You” but after
further discussions, the
camera can be placed in different places and turned on and off as
desired. Some
family members agree that placed at the door to identify visitors could
be
helpful. Others thought that their parents would agree to provide
access to the
system if it was placed in the kitchen, as it could allow a regular
visit where
parents could be seen by their children.
I
am beginning to see the possibilities for this type of technology in
the homes. What do you think? Your comments and thoughts are really
helpful.
Should we go this route?
Thoughts,
comments, suggestions are always
welcome.
Contact me at donna@ashcanada.com
Health Access, Home and Nursing care
514-695-3131
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