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Each year hundreds of thousands of older persons are abused, neglected, and exploited by family members and others. Many victims are people who are older, frail, and vulnerable and cannot help themselves and depend on others to meet their most basic needs.

Legislatures in all 50 states have passed some form of elder abuse prevention laws. Laws and definitions of terms vary considerably from one state to another, but all states have set up reporting systems. Generally, adult protective services (APS) agencies receive and investigate reports of suspected elder abuse.

The 2004 Survey of State Adult Protective Services, funded by AoA, found the following:

• A 19.7 percent increase from 2000 – 2004 in the combined total of reports of elder and vulnerable adult abuse and neglect;
• A 15.6 percent increase from 2000 – 2004 in substantiated cases;
• In 20 of the states, more than two in five victims (42.8%) were age 80 or older;
• Most alleged perpetrators in 2003 were adult children (32.6%) or other family members (21.5%), and spouses/intimate partners accounted for 11.3% of the total (11 states responding).

Generally Accepted Definitions

Elder abuse is an umbrella term referring to any knowing, intentional, or negligent act by a caregiver or any other person that causes harm or a serious risk of harm to a vulnerable adult.

• Physical abuse is inflicting, or threatening to inflict, physical pain or injury on a vulnerable elder, or depriving them of a basic need.
• Sexual abuse is the infliction of non-consensual sexual contact of any kind.
• Emotional or psychological abuse is the infliction of mental or emotional anguish or distress on an elder person through verbal or nonverbal acts.
• Financial or material exploitation is the illegal taking, misuse, or concealment of funds, property, or assets of a vulnerable elder.
• Neglect is the refusal or failure by those responsible to provide food, shelter, health care, or protection for a vulnerable elder.
• Self-neglect is characterized as the behavior of an elderly person that threatens his/her own health or safety.
• Abandonment - The desertion of a vulnerable elder by anyone who has assumed the responsibility for care or custody of that person.

Reporting Elder Abuse

To report elder abuse, contact APS through your state’s hotline. The APS agency screens calls for potential seriousness, and it keeps the information it receives confidential. If the agency decides the situation possibly violates state elder abuse laws, it assigns a caseworker to conduct an investigation (in cases of an emergency, usually within 24 hours). If the victim needs crisis intervention, services are available. If elder abuse is not substantiated, most APS agencies will work as necessary with other community agencies to obtain any social and health services that the older person needs.

The older person has the right to refuse services offered by APS. The APS agency provides service only if the senior agrees or has been declared incapacitated by the court and a guardian has been appointed. The APS agency only takes such action as a last resort.

To read the rest of this excellent article on elder abuse prevention, from the Administration on Aging, please click here: http://www.aoa.gov/eldfam/Elder_Rights/Elder_Abuse/Elder_Abuse.asp