Elder Abuse: Carers Deserve Our Understanding and Help
By Andrew Chadwick

There are those carers, in nursing homes, who have unspeakable desires to hurt their charges. These cases, naturally horrifies us and are given the publicity they deserve, in the media.

Lesser known facts:

• majority of the elder abuses are committed by family members (son, daughter or spouse);
• trusted friends, neighbours or home-service providers exploit their charges
  
  Family carers.
  
  Often a son or daughter has to care for one or both parents, even though they may have a family of their own to take care of. This situation cannot be easy, as often stress and tension make life most difficult for the family carer.
  
  If these carers were given assistance by government or their local community, things could be very different. In most cases, a break period or respite from their care duties can really make a great difference to the carer and their charges.
  
  There should be every reason for those in government to ensure that these family carers are given all the assistance possible. Politicians should also be aware that these family carers are saving the public a lot of money.
  
  A few recent studies have also found that the elderly do much better at home than in a nursing home. (See Spotlight on EA earlier Post)
  
  Denmark has set a great example on assisting elderly to stay longer at home, instead of shunting the elderly to a nursing home, as soon as a need for care arises.
  
  Carers in Nursing Homes
  
  Majority of these carers are often underpaid, and overworked. They may also have to tackle difficult residents. These ‘difficult residents’ are, in most cases, those who are suffering from Alzheimer’s or dementia.
  
  Are the carers trained to tackle these cases? If not, why aren’t they given the training? Is it another case of “funding” or “profit before people” scenario.
  
  It is my view that most carers are doing great jobs of looking after the elderly. They are usually the type with great compassion for their charges.
  
  We must, therefore, give them all the assistance required for them to do their job. That is, remove all the obstacles to their own well-being and job satisfaction.
  
  Surely, that’s the least we can do.
  

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