Ashlie After children, the elderly is the most vulnerable people in our society today. The National Center
Question:
Ashlie After children, the elderly is the most vulnerable people in our society today. The National Center on Elder Abuse Administration on Aging (NCEA) reports that no one knows how many people actually suffer from elder abuse. There are different types of elder abuse other than physically abuse, the most common type thought of in regards to abuse. There are physical, emotional, psychological, neglect, fraud and scams (Miller, 2017). The two that this writer finds more crucial are emotional abuse and neglect. Emotional abuse can be described as intimidation, humiliation or blame. Intimidating the elderly with yelling, screaming or even threats is part of emotional abuse.
Ridiculing the elderly is also part of emotional abuse. Neglect can be described as the caregiver not fulfilling the caretaking obligations. Neglect constitutes for more than half of all reported cases of elder abuse. There are two types of neglect, active (intentional) or passive (unintentional). This writer considers these two types of abuse the most crucial in regards to the mental affect it has on the elder population. When someone is unable to make their daily needs met, it is the caregiver’s responsibility to make sure these needs are met and met in a proper manner. The challenges this writer perceives in abolishing elder abuse is the lack of reporting of certain types of abuse.
For examples, emotional abuse, unless the elderly person being abused reports the abuse, there is no one being held accountable for the abuse. In return, there is no one able to stop the abuse (Nerenberg, 2013). If you know someone that is being abused, the case needs to be reported. As healthcare providers you need to follow the chain of command at your facility, but ultimately the case needs to be reported to Adult Protective Services. Make sure your patient realizes the abuse is not their fault, they have done nothing to deserve that type of treatment (Miller, 2017)