What is Considered Elderly Abuse?
Elderly abuse has the potential to occur at the facility where your family members reside today or that in which they live in their final years. You can do your part to prevent potential elderly abuse by steering your loved ones toward care provided in the home for as long as possible before considering a transition to assisted living. Choose the right at home care services provider and you will rest easy knowing this professional is available to provide your parent or other relative with potentially life-saving assistance.
At the bare minimum, in-home care provided by a professional will improve your loved one’s quality of life. The alternative is care provided at an assisted living facility, nursing home or other space that might be characterized by elderly abuse. In general, elderly abuse constitutes physical, sexual and/or mental abuse and/or neglect. If you know or suspect your relative has been abused by another person, contact an attorney and shift toward home care provided in the comfort of your relative’s home rather than an institution.
Causes of Elderly Abuse
Elderly abuse is the result of negligence, meaning another party’s failure to provide the acceptable level of care to others. Whether your loved one was physically beaten, neglected, or otherwise abused, you should proactively attempt to right this wrong with the assistance of an attorney. Some abuse senior citizens for financial gain. Other care facilities simply lack high-quality caregivers. Regardless of the specific reasons why elderly abuse occur, what matters most is that you transition your parent or other relative away toward caring in-home service.
Symptoms of Elder Abuse
You can do your part to quickly identify abuse by looking for the most common signs that such abuse is occurring. If you spot bruises, cuts, scarring or any other irregularities on your loved one’s body, make note of the changes and bring them to the attention of your parent. Document the evidence just in case you take legal action.
Keep in mind, your parent or other relative might not be so quick to step forward with evidence of elder abuse as he or she might fear retribution or simply not having a safe space to go. Even a minor change in a loved one’s routine or appearance might be a clue that something is wrong. Recognize the warning signs and subtle hints as noted above, be aware of those indications and proceed accordingly. When in doubt, speak up, make it clear you want to know the truth and broach the subject with confidence.
Why Does Elder Abuse Happen?
Elder abuse occurs for reasons specific to each unique situation. One health care industry professional might view the elderly as targets while another is looking for financial gain, another seeks power over others and so on. One thing is clear: those abusing the elderly enjoying manipulating others for personal gain.
Laws Against Taking Advantage of the Elderly
There are laws on the books to protect senior citizens against manipulative and abusive parties. As an example, the federal government passed the Elder Justice Act into law in 2010, to define the financial exploitation of senior citizens as the fraudulent or otherwise illegal use of recourses of a senior citizen for personal benefit or other gain that deprives the elderly individual the rightful use of or access to the assets.
If you know or suspect your loved one has been manipulated or harmed by another party such as an employee at an elder are facility, it is important that you understand your legal rights. Criminals sometimes target vulnerable individuals such as the elderly with Alzheimer’s disease as they can be manipulated that much more easily. Instead of placing the entirety of your trust in outsiders at a care facility, opt for in-person, in-home care so your parent or other family member does not have to leave the safety and familiarity of home.
What To Do if You Suspect Elder Abuse?
If you suspect your parent or other relative has been abused by another person or institution, reach out to him or her to discuss the matter in-depth. It might make sense to also speak with a personal injury attorney.
Above all, consider a shift to care provided by a friendly nurse or other caregiver in the comfort of your loved one’s home. Move care directly into your loved one’s home and he or she will feel that much more comfortable being provided with care and not subjected to living in a foreign space. Let’s shift our attention to how to best report the elderly abuse to the authorities to right this wrong and transition to a new chapter in your loved one’s life.
Report Elderly Abuse
Report the abuse to the police as well as the institution where the abuse occurred. Keep in mind, it is not your responsibility to prove senior abuse is occurring. Rather, you should proactively file a detailed report that includes the name and address of the senior citizen, the name of the supposed abuser, the senior’s medical conditions, abuse details and your own personal contact information.
At this point, you can wait for the authorities to make a decision. However, your loved one’s comfort and quality of life should not have to suffer in the meantime. Opt for in-home service custom-tailored to the needs and desires of the senior in your life and your family member will live in comfort without resorting to institutionalized living.