New provincial hotline for elder abuse victims receives local praise
— By Tim Whitnell, Post staff
Apr 17, 2009
A provincial hotline to aid seniors who may be victims of abuse is another welcome tool in fighting such crime, says a regional police officer.
The Ontario Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse (ONPEA) has launched a new free, confidential, province-wide phone service to assist at-risk seniors. The new Seniors Safety Line — 1-866-299-1011 — provides 24 hours a day, seven-day-a-week assistance, in 150 languages.
In June 2008, the Ontario Trillium Foundation, an agency of the Ontario government, awarded ONPEA a three-year, $415,700 grant to help with the set-up of the hotline.
ONPEA projects that the new hotline will provide support to more than 4,000 seniors in the first year of operation.
The Halton Seniors Helpline (1-866-457- 8252) provides information to assist seniors within the community in resolving issues and obtaining assistance in addressing situations such as physical, emotional or financial abuse or neglect.
The Halton service has trained senior volunteers answering the phones Monday-Friday from 11 a. m.-2 p. m. Outside of those hours, you can leave a message. If a situation is a crisis, police urge people to call 911.
Brennan said the Halton Seniors Help Line handled 400 calls in the past year. “Calls are increasing for things from elder abuse to general information. Eighty per cent of elder abuse is not reported so it's good to see they are calling and realizing there are resources out there,” she said.
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