Joint Effort to Combat Elder Abuse (NY USA)

Soares, Equinox combat elder abuse
Posted at: 06/16/2008 04:39:55 PM

ALBANY - The Albany County district attorney and a domestic shelter are teaming up to do something about the abuse of the elderly.

Only about five percent of senior citizens who are abused speak up. Most cases fly under the radar because seniors don't talk about it, especially when the abuse is at the hands of a relative.

It was six months ago when Albany paramedics found a 78-year-old woman dead in her bed at a home on Crestwood Court. Police say Beth Adams starved to death. Her daughter, Carol Adams, cared for her. She faces charges including manslaughter and endangering the welfare of an elderly person.

"This family was on someone's radar," District Attorney David Doares said.

But no one came forward, and Soares says that's the problem.

"It's so hard to report it to authorities when it's somebody you love or somebody who has a lot of power over you," explained Kathy Magee with Equinox.

Equinox and the district attorney's office are collaborating to combat this problem. Equinox's elder abuse project will work to educate people who work with elders and provide case management. Magee says they already have a case load of 10 victims.

In addition, the district attorney's office and police formed an advisory council. They want to make it easier and more comfortable for senior citizens to report abuse anonymously.

Some ideas are to train postal workers to look for warning signs of abuse when delivering mail and bank workers to pay extra attention to senior citizens' bank accounts for any dramatic changes.

SOURCE: WNYT
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