Identifying Signs of Elder Abuse

by Elsie Dawe
February 24, 2008

Last week I said I would this week define the six generally recognized types of abuse and the signs of each that might indicate that senior abuse is occurring.
However, due to the importance of this topic and the amount of available material on it, I will only do three this week and the remaining three next week.
I will begin with physical abuse which, according to the B.C. Coalition to Eliminate Abuse of Seniors (CEAS), is the non-accidental use of physical abuse or mistreatment of seniors such as:
• Unexplained cuts, scrapes, bruises, injuries for which explanation does not fit the evidence,
• Avoidance of significant family, friend or caregiver by older person,
• History of repeated injury or illness,
•Symmetrical bruising and/or grip marks,
• Delay in seeking treatment,
• Unhealed sores and/or pressure marks and lacerations that require stitches, broken bones, internal injuries, disablement, disfigurement and even death.

Some of these injuries are caused by pinching, squeezing, pushing, shoving, restraining, jerking, shaking, pulling, slapping, biting, hair pulling, hitting, punching, kicking, choking, forced sexual activity, forced feeding of undesired food and medications, throwing objects at seniors, throwing seniors on a bed or chair, and using weapons.
Psychological or emotional abuse, according to the CEAS, attacks a senior’s feelings of self-worth or self-esteem.
Use of verbal abuse by taunts, threats, put-downs, withdrawal of love and affection, or emotional support by the abuser, over a period of time, affects how a senior feels and is extremely harmful to his or her well-being.
Quite an exhaustive list of acts to accomplish such abuse can be found quite easily.
Two that stand out like a red flag for me are lying and not keeping promises.
When I interact with people who lie and do not keep promises—and unfortunately I do—I not only begin to pay little heed to what they say and promise, but I also lose all respect for them.
Their lies and broken promises cause emotional and physical hardships to which they pay virtually no heed.

In the film The Accidental Tourist, a man tries to explain to his soon-to-be ex-wife after another try failed. “It’s who I am when I’m with you and it wasn’t good,” he says.
His wife would often begin her sentences to him with, “The trouble with you is…”
The man turned inward—as many seniors do under such conditions. However, after getting involved with a lady who didn’t continually berate him, our gentleman began to blossom once again.
Some seniors, because they feel cornered, unfortunately just keep on taking their various put downs at a high-cost to their spunk and self-confidence.
How many times have you heard somebody yell, “You’re stupid?” Well, years ago, a neighbour shouted it so loudly to his wife that the whole neighbourhood heard. Their marriage ended six months later.
But what does a senior do if caught in such a situation with no viable option in sight?
There are many more indicators of senior psychological abuse, but lack of space propels me onward to our last category of today, that of financial abuse.
According to the CEAS, financial abuse is damage to or loss of assets or property.
The abuser is usually a spouse or partner, family member (often adult child), caregiver, friend, or a trusted person in the senior’s life.
Financial abuse is often accompanied by other forms of abuse, such as emotional abuse, physical abuse, or denial of rights. Three components are necessary for financial abuse to happen:
• Need or greed. The abuser is under financial pressure.
• Opportunity. The abuser has access to funds or property.
• False sense of entitlement—“I deserve it. I am owed.”
If you fall victim to this type of abuse, your comfortable future can vanish in the twinkling of an eye.
Be very careful to whom you give power of attorney and what conditions you attach thereto, because given to the wrong person(s) with no checks in place, it is a recipe for disaster.
Some seniors will sell virtually everything they have and give the proceeds along with most of their savings to their children so that they can finally get their share from the government in the form of the supplement and also watch their children (and grandchildren) enjoy the money, believing that their children will take good care of them. Yes, often with broken hearts, they watch their next of kin enjoy their hard-earned money while they live in the cheapest nursing home with nary a penny to spent

SOURCE: bclocalnews