Advocating An Interfaith Response to Elder Abuse

Written by Mary Beth Hislop - Town Crier Staff Writer  

20 OCTOBER 2010

It’s no big secret that America’s citizens are aging. During the 1900s, the U.S. population 65 and under tripled, while those 65 and above increased eleven-fold – from 3.1 million in 1900 to 33.2 million in 1994.

The numbers supplied by the Foundation for Health in Aging aren’t any big secret to Adult Protective Services, which estimates that the nation’s 65-and-older populace will double to 70 million – one in five people will be a senior citizen – by 2030. That same age group will double in California by 2020.

And it’s no big secret that many of the elderly will require assistance with daily-living tasks. If the statistics hold, between 1 million and 2 million of them will be victims of elder abuse each year. The big secret is that 90 percent of the abusers are family members. Worse, one in five cases isn’t reported. It’s a number that shocks Betty Malks.

“This is a crime,” she said. “This is the crime of the 21st century. Elder abuse is increasing all over the world. And people are getting older all over the world.”

As director of Santa Clara County’s Department of Aging and Adult Services for 12 years, Malks knows the numbers only too well.

Today, Malks is project director for Protecting Our Elders, a Santa Clara County Mental Health Department program that focuses on educating interfaith communities about elder abuse.

With more than 700 congregations in the county, it’s an approach with promise, according to Los Altos resident Margriet DeLange, a gerontolologist and the program’s community organizer.

To report a suspected case of elder abuse, call Santa Clara County Adult Protective Services at (800) 414-2002.

“(The phone line is) manned 24/7,” Malks said. “And we have live people answering the phone.”

In most cases, the agency investigates reports within 24 hours, with an understanding of and respect for seniors’ rights to self-determination.

“We do whatever we can to keep (seniors) in the home,” Malks said, “and get the perp out.”

For more information, call 269-2589 or visit www.protectingourelders.net

Abridged
SOURCE:    LosAltosOnline




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