Elder

Abuse

According
What is Elder Abuse?
According to the National
Committee for the
Prevention of Elder Abuse,
elder abuse is defined as
any form of mistreatment
that results in harm or loss
to an older person.
Elder abuse falls under the
category of Ageism, which
is a form of discrimination
or prejudice towards older
people.
National Statistics

Learn About the Social

Problem That is Growing
into a National Crisis

Elder abuse is a rising

problem in the United
States. The growing elderly
population is a contributing
factor to this and although

a specific statistic is
unknown, it is estimated
that about 2.1 million older
Americans become victims
of elder abuse every year.
Types of Elder Abuse
The National Center on
Elder Abuse (NCEA) has
identified six types of elder
abuse ranked from most to
least common in a domestic
setting.
1. Neglect (55%)
2. Physical Abuse (14.6%)
3. Financial and material
exploitation (12.3%)
4. Emotional Abuse (7.7%)
5. Sexual Abuse (<1%)
6. Other types (6.1%)

The Victims

Women are at a greater

risk of becoming a
victim of elder abuse in
their lifetime.
90% of the perpetrators
are family members.
The number one risk
factor for elder abuse is
vulnerability.

18 percent involved
financial exploitation; 15
percent involved physical
abuse; 11 percent involved
caregiver neglect; and 5
percent involved sexual
abuse.

Utah Statistics
According to the Utah Elder
Abuse Report, during fiscal
year 2004, Adult Protective
Services investigated 2,340
allegations of vulnerable
adult abuse, neglect, and
exploitation. Thirty-three
percent of all confirmed
cases in 2004 involved selfneglect. Another 18 percent
involved emotional abuse;

Personal Experience
I volunteered at Legacy Retirement
helping organize activities for the
residents. I spoke with Barbara
Smith, who is the activities
assistant at Legacy, and I asked
her if shes ever witnessed any type
of elder abuse. She said, Ive
witnessed neglect in my job. Ive
seen too many times, especially
when the holidays roll around, that

the immediate family of the

resident just doesnt seem to care.
Through this experience I learned
to always be kind and patient with
the elderly. Some of them arent
fully aware of what is going on all
the time so you really have to do
what you can to make them feel
like theyre in a safe place. I have
gained a new appreciation for
retirement homes like Legacy
Retirement that really care for their
residents when the families are
unable to. Some residents have
great and supportive families but
some are left alone most of the
time, so the employees really go out
of their way to make sure they feel
wanted and cared for.

Resources
Should you suspect that a family
member or a relative is being
neglected, abused, or exploited,
your first call should be made to
Adult Protective Services (APS).

Utah Hotlines

Elder Abuse:
Domestic/Community
1-800-371-7897 or (801) 264-7669

Nursing Home Abuse/Long Term

Care
1-800-662-4147 or (801) 538-6158

What We Can Do
As a society we need to focus
on reporting elderly abuse.

According to the NCEA, for

every one elder abuse case
reported to the authorities,
roughly five go unreported. By
helping report these cases we
can all help create a healthy
and safe environment for our
elderly.