Seniors Taking Aim At Elder Abuse (CANADA)

25 November 2009

 by staffwriter

As conscious youth we often have a desire to make our mark in society, but there are times when we do not know what we can do to make a difference. Consider an opportunity to help a group of people who came to Canada feeling an intense sense of isolation and displacement of identity in finding themselves in a new country, yet managed to develop a sense of community and culture for us to grow up in. This group of people is the elderly in South Asian communities. Today, there are many among the elderly that are victims of elder abuse and suffer in silence.

So where do we as youth come into the picture? Here is an opportunity for us youth to give back by working alongside seniors in raising awareness on the issues of elder abuse.

This month marks the launch of REH’MA Community Services latest project titled “Seniors Taking Aim at Elder Abuse”.  This project is in large part funded by the New Horizons for Seniors Program (NHSP) and REH’MA itself.

For more than a decade, REH’MA Community Services has been committed to the well-being of seniors, women, youth and newcomers to Canada. It encourages seniors to take a leading role in understanding the perceptions, beliefs and attitudes about elder abuse in Muslim Communities.

“Seniors have committed so much to building our communities – they are the movers of the past for where we are today”, said Amra Munawar the Project Director of REH’MA Community Services. “In this year long project, seniors will be providing leadership and sharing their knowledge and skills with others.”  

The aims of the project are to raise awareness of elder abuse in Muslim communities. Elder abuse is any abuse or neglect of a person aged 60 or older by a caregiver, spouse, family member, friend or a neighbour, where there is an expectation of trust that threatens his/her safety. This can include physical abuse, emotional abuse, neglect, and/or financial exploitation.

This project is of a very unique nature. Seniors will be a vital part of a steering committee and will use their skills and experiences to oversee the project. Working alongside university students, scholars and professionals in related fields, they will design the project, conduct focus groups with seniors from Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan, collect data, and submit reports.

The “Seniors Taking Aim at Elder Abuse” project is a new and very important endeavor for our communities. If you are interested in participating in this project, contact Fatima Sajan, Project Coordinator for REH’MA Community Services at fatima@rehma-cs.org.

SOURCE:    SAGENNEXT.COM
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