title: Elder abuse and neglect.
abstract: Home care providers have a professional and legal obligation to help prevent their elderly patients from being abused and neglected by family members and other home care providers. The elderly are often in a vulnerable situation because they depend on family members or others to help with personal care, housekeeping chores, and money management. A recent article in a major newspaper illustrates the problem. It reported that Mr. X, who was 84 years old, had been without food or water while he lay curled in the trunk of his car for 2 days before he was found by the police. When found, he reported that he saw daylight only when his housekeeper lifted the car trunk lid to ask him if her forgery of his check looked authentic. After he was rescued, he acknowledged that he was confused about why his housekeeper, who had befriended him, had turned on him. He expressed concern for her and hoped she would get a break in her sentencing. "She didn't kill me," he said. This situation is not that unusual. Elder abuse and neglect is a major public health problem in the United States, with most cases hidden from public scrutiny. The National center on Elder Abuse reports that cases of domestic abuse against the elderly increased from 117,000 in 1986 to 241,000 in 1994, and that represented only a fraction of older Americans who were abused and neglected in their homes. The Center estimates that 818,000 elderly Americans were victims of various types of domestic abuse in 1994. They believe the rise in reported cases illustrates a growing pattern of violence and neglect among the nation's expanding elderly population.
authors.affiliation: Humboldt State University in Arcata, California, USA.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Thobaben
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003152:Community Health Nursing; D004552:Elder Abuse / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D006699:Home Care Services; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009730:Nursing Assessment