ABUSE IN AN ADULT NURSING SETTING

Abuse in an Adult Nursing Setting

Abuse in an Adult Nursing Setting

Introduction

Older people are now accepted to hospital more often and for longer time span than any other age group. Older people now comprise two thirds of all patients in acute backgrounds (SNMAC, 2001). Due to the environment of orthopaedic problems, the number of orthopaedic patients in acute hospital backgrounds that are over the age of 60 extends to increase.

The topic of elder abuse is progressively being increased in nursing practice. The orthopaedic nurse is in a especially significant and exclusive place to identify elder abuse since the most of orthopaedic patients are elderly and may be in a position of expanded vulnerability. In supplement, numerous elderly orthopaedic patients have maintained wounds and may be dwelling in communal isolation and thus may be susceptible to abuse. It is crucial, then that orthopaedic nurses are well versed in the communal policy and perform implications that enclose the abuse of older people to double-check that elderly patients are protected .

Elder abuse

Abuse can be characterised as: “Misuse, perversion, unjust, or corrupt practice; reviling; abusing or mean speech” (Oxford English Dictionary, 2000, p. 5). When speaking to older people Woodrow (1998) proposes that in health care backgrounds, a chronological age is utilised to characterise elderly and that it may encompass any individual who is sixty five and above. Another period that will be utilised in conjunction with elderly abuse is that of a susceptible adult. A susceptible mature individual in relative to older people, is characterised by Roe (2002, p. 16) as: “… an older individual who are at risk of abuse … those who are in require of care or aid, dwelling in their own dwelling or in an organisation, who are incapable to protect themselves”.

There appears to be a need of a accurate, comprehensive delineation of abuse, which has hindered the development of perform in preventing elder abuse (Tomlin, 1990). The changing delineations of elder abuse in the publications all encompass a kind of facets of the problem. Eastman's (1994, p. 12) delineation embraces institutional abuse, defining abuse as: “… the physical, emotional, economic or psychological abuse of an older individual by a prescribed or casual carer. The abuse is recurring and is the violation of human municipal privileges by a individual or individuals who have the power over the life of a dependant”.

Although there is a lawful delineation of child abuse, which can be utilised to protect young children in the UK, no alike protection is afforded to elderly people (Hindermarch, 1999). The scribe aspires to address the modes in which nurses in orthopaedic backgrounds can assist protect the elderly from distinct kinds of abuse. It is significant to accept that abuse has no communal boundaries and can occur to any individual, anywhere. This entails that abuse can occur, and does occur, in the hospital setting as well as in the community. This furthermore entails that abuse manifests itself in numerous modes from striking a patient, ...