Elderly Abuse

What is elderly abuse?

The elder abuse is a set of behaviors or attitudes, single or repeated on the elderly as part of a relationship of trust or dependency, which may cause distress or injury to such persons. Abuse can be physical, moral, financial, and sexual or simply neglect. Eventually the elderly occupy most help with many household chores such as meals, cleaning house, going to the store and others. But caring for an elder can be overwhelming or may be physically impossible. Most families with love and care for elderly respect, but usually when this happens abuse involving a relative or caregiver (American Public Health Association 2006, 37).

Incidence of elderly abuse

Abuse can occur both in the home of the elderly in institutions and professionals come as the entourage. In addition, victims often remain silent (shame, fear of retaliation) . It is now difficult to quantify the real problem. Elder abuse refers to maltreatment of an older person who puts endanger their health or safety. While the abuse may be caused by a person who has a degree of confidence, as a relative or an assistant Payment can also be autoprovocado. In cases of self-neglect, a older person cannot me4et their own needs (including hygiene, food and housing) due to impaired emotional, cognitive or physical. Elder abuse can cause depression, broken bones, ulcers, bruising and death. Because often people who experience elder abuse can not seek help, friends, family, neighbors or doctors are in the best position to recognize and respond to an abusive situation.

The abuse at home

As part of the abuse at home, the risk factors of onset of abuse are related:

the elderly person (depending on the degree of physical or psychological dependence, and dementia states , financial, or social isolation);

family situation in which the elderly evolves (alcoholism, drug addiction, financial problems, psychological fragility, history of domestic violence or physical exhaustion and nervous parents who care for the elderly);

The infrastructure of the living (local too small or not suited to the degree of dependency of the elderly person, geographic isolation).

Abuse in institutions

Abuse in institutions is often seen as a symptom of serious institutional weaknesses. Indeed, an institution that has no active approach to welfare runs the risk that occurs within it of different kinds of abuse. As stated Eliane Corbet, Doctor in Educational Psychology, there is a violence done to a user once an institution fails to fulfill its mission or more for it, as soon as the quality of its reception is not guaranteed, when the interests of the institution take precedence over those of the user received (American Public Health Association 2006, 37).

Every year, tens of thousands of cases of abuse still punctuate the lives of nursing homes. Officially, only 5% of 10,500 establishments would be subject to alerts. This would apply still more than 32,000 residents, potential victims of practices ranging from starvation to assault and battery (American Public Health Association 2006, 37).

In fact, according to industry (associations of families of residents FNAPAEF, unions and managers ...