Child abuse is mandatory reporting and so is elder abuse when it occurs in residential care. What about when the individual doesn't live in residual care?
I am currently in my last year of social work degree and I'm researching why elder abuse is not covered for all elders in our community.
As you are probably aware elder abuse is on the increase as our aged population lives longer and they remain in their own homes or cared for my family members.
Do you feel as a neighbour if you witness a son abusing their elderly parent would you report it? If as a bank worker you noticed an elder's bank account diminishing rapidly since their family member became power attorney would you report it? But would they know who to report it too?
Elder abuse comes under domestic violence and research shows people do not like becoming involve when they witness or become aware of domestic violence occurring.
We also know for a lot of our aged population they cannot for themselves report being abused for various reasons, health reasons, fear of getting family into trouble, losing contact of family just to mention a few examples.
What are your opinions on making mandatory reporting for elder abuse in our community, would you support it? Would you support a helpline to be set up similar to that for child abuse to report elder abuse?
I realise there pros and cons for this subject and would like to hear those opinions please.
Thank you
you make a fine point. i personally am not guilty of the hero complex. i severed a relationship with an old " friend " last week because she wouldnt help me with mom. i write to my sisters often asking them to visit to give mom some additional female companionship. a whole bunch of no - reply is what im getting back. i do honestly respect your opinion, its quite valid in some cases.
i s'pose im in favor of the current system of professionals reporting abusive situations but the next door neighbor probably cant manage his / her own problems and dont know s**t about the challenges of caring for dementia, alz, bipolar patients.
And, yup, sometimes caregivers won't give up any of the responsibilities that could be delegated.
Now ... are you in favor of mandatory abuse reporting? :)
I'm not really sure what the solution would be. We need to protect our elders. We also need to protect their caregivers and families. I, for one, consider privacy very important. Be careful what you wish for. In an attempt to help and protect, you can also ruin someone else's life. Very slippery slope, IMHO.
Also there is the issue of false reporting, for devious reasons. Siblings are fighting over what should be done with mother's money. One notices a bruise on her arm and makes up a story about the other (who is caregiver) abusing her. Elders with dementia may not be able to give an accurate account. It's a real nightmare. I don't know whether "mandatory" reporting would have any impact on this or not.
If I saw abuse of a neighbor I would definitely report it. But I don't think most abuse happens where neighbors are apt to see it. And there would need to be a lot of "training" on what signs to look for. The whole first year my husband had dementia and was falling down regularly he had bruises all over him. He took blood thinners and the bruises were very colorful and noticeable. If some person not familiar with the situation had reported this as suspicious I'm sure I could have defended myself, with the doctors' support, but it would have been added stress to an already overwhelming situation. For that reason I would be reluctant to report possible abuse unless I saw it happen or knew a lot about the situation. Just seeing bruises, for example, would not prompt me to report it.
I don't know who in a large banking organization would be keeping track of what is going on in a modest individual account.
I would support a helpline. I would not support mandatory reporting except by those with professional responsibility.