Elderly deserve better from us
April 21, 2012
The Sentinel
RECENTLY there have been many complaints about discrimination against, and ill-treatment, of the elderly.
Proposed restriction of bus passes and virtual expulsion from hospitals are only two instances.
In most primitive societies, the few who survived to old age were revered. Their knowledge of sources of water, edible plants and management of childbirth were assets.
As time went on, some tribes grew harsher. In western Asia, one tribe killed and ate men over the age of 70. Women over the age of 70 were strangled and buried. Another tribe starved its over-70s. A third threw its sick and aged to packs of dogs.
Some villages in Japan gave their old a jug of water and a rice cake and sent them up a mountain.
Now let us take a leap to science fiction. One Star Trek episode featured a planet on which people committed suicide at the age of 60.
I hope our political leaders have no time for history or science fiction. If they do, they might bear in mind the following tale.
A couple get rid of granny by putting her in a leaky boat and pushing it downstream. The next day the father finds his little boy carving something out of wood. He says: "What are you making, son?"
Reply: "I'm practising for when I make a big boat to put you and mummy in when you're old."
MARGARET BROWN
Burslem
SOURCE: This is Staffordshire, UK
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April 24, 2012
Alleged Elder Abuse Starts Investigation at Bremerton Nursing Home (WA. USA)
Alleged elder abuse starts investigation at Bremerton nursing home
By KATE WHITTLE
Bremerton Patriot Staff Writer
April 19, 2012
A worker at a local retirement community last week reported a fellow employee to police out of fear for resident safety, after allegedly witnessing physical abuse that included covering the mouths and noses of 90-year-olds to stop them from speaking.
A caregiver working at the Cascades of Bremerton Retirement Community, 3201 Pine Road NE, is on paid leave while the home investigates allegations that the worker was abusing elderly dementia patients.
According to records, Bremerton City Police responded April 13 to a report made by a Cascades employee that she’d observed her coworker being rough with patients. The reporting employee told police she would be going on vacation soon, and she wanted to come forward to protect the residents, according to the report.
The suspect worker’s alleged abuses include stepping on patients’ feet and placing a hand over their mouths and noses to quiet them.
“[The worker] will also push them in the forehead or neck with her index and middle finger,” according to the report.
The alleged victims named in the report are wheelchair-bound dementia patients, ages 91 and 94.
Sheryl Page, executive director at the Willows Retirement Living Community, said the allegations remain unproven.
"Our investigation was inconclusive," she said. "The allegations are just allegations, and it has been turned over to police."
The report said Cascades management have found no evidence so far to support the allegations, and neither of the alleged victims said they were assaulted or scared of the worker.
No other staff members reported seeing the abuse, the report also said.
The case has been referred to Washington State Attorney General Rob McKenna’s office, as state law requires. An attorney general spokesman said the office won’t confirm or deny investigations.
The Cascades of Bremerton campus includes the Willows Retirement Living Community and Ashley Gardens at Dyes Inlet assisted living facility.
SOURCE: Central Kitsap Reporter
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By KATE WHITTLE
Bremerton Patriot Staff Writer
April 19, 2012
A worker at a local retirement community last week reported a fellow employee to police out of fear for resident safety, after allegedly witnessing physical abuse that included covering the mouths and noses of 90-year-olds to stop them from speaking.
A caregiver working at the Cascades of Bremerton Retirement Community, 3201 Pine Road NE, is on paid leave while the home investigates allegations that the worker was abusing elderly dementia patients.
According to records, Bremerton City Police responded April 13 to a report made by a Cascades employee that she’d observed her coworker being rough with patients. The reporting employee told police she would be going on vacation soon, and she wanted to come forward to protect the residents, according to the report.
The suspect worker’s alleged abuses include stepping on patients’ feet and placing a hand over their mouths and noses to quiet them.
“[The worker] will also push them in the forehead or neck with her index and middle finger,” according to the report.
The alleged victims named in the report are wheelchair-bound dementia patients, ages 91 and 94.
Sheryl Page, executive director at the Willows Retirement Living Community, said the allegations remain unproven.
"Our investigation was inconclusive," she said. "The allegations are just allegations, and it has been turned over to police."
The report said Cascades management have found no evidence so far to support the allegations, and neither of the alleged victims said they were assaulted or scared of the worker.
No other staff members reported seeing the abuse, the report also said.
The case has been referred to Washington State Attorney General Rob McKenna’s office, as state law requires. An attorney general spokesman said the office won’t confirm or deny investigations.
The Cascades of Bremerton campus includes the Willows Retirement Living Community and Ashley Gardens at Dyes Inlet assisted living facility.
SOURCE: Central Kitsap Reporter
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Where to Report Elder Abuse (USA)
• Nursing Home Abuse Hotlines
This is NCEA's directory of state hotlines for reporting abuse in nursing homes, assisted living, or board and care homes.
• Locate an Ombudsman, State Agencies and Citizen Advocacy Groups
This is a directory of all state and regional ombudsmen, state offices on aging, state licensure and certification agencies, state adult protection agencies, nursing home quality review boards, Medicaid agencies and Medicare Fraud Control Units nationwide.
There are excellent information on Elder Abuse and where to get help. Please go to SOURCE.
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This is NCEA's directory of state hotlines for reporting abuse in nursing homes, assisted living, or board and care homes.
• Locate an Ombudsman, State Agencies and Citizen Advocacy Groups
This is a directory of all state and regional ombudsmen, state offices on aging, state licensure and certification agencies, state adult protection agencies, nursing home quality review boards, Medicaid agencies and Medicare Fraud Control Units nationwide.
There are excellent information on Elder Abuse and where to get help. Please go to SOURCE.
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April 21, 2012
VERMONT: Elder Abuse Investigations On The Rise
By James Jardine
Staff Writer
4/18/2012
The State of Vermont has begun addressing complaints of poor performance against the agency responsible for investigating and resolving claims of exploitation and abuse against vulnerable adults, according to Dr. Susan Wehry, the Commissioner of the Dept. of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living (DAIL).
Wehry stated in a recent interview that allegations contained in a recent lawsuit against the State have largely been addressed and resolved. The suit charged that Adult Protective Services (APS), part of the DAIL, failed to commence investigations within 48 hours of receiving complaints of elder abuse or exploitation, failed to complete investigations in a timely manner and failed to offer or arrange protective services when necessary.
According to the suit, "Hundreds of reports of abuse, neglect and exploitation wait for months before being investigated."
The suit, brought in Washington Superior Court against the Vermont Agency of Human Services by two individuals -- the Community of Vermont Elders and an organization named Disability Rights Vermont -- leveled the charges against the DAIL.
The Complaint, filed in December, 2011, led to a decision by Judge Michael Kurpersmith that dismissed the two individuals as parties to the complaint and dismissed a breach of contract claim contained in the suit. Judge Kupersmith will give Plaintiffs until May 7 to refile a mandamus claim because the original claim seeking an order failed to state a claim.
Ken Gordon, Director of the Area Agency on Aging in St. Johnsbury, said the allegations of an inadequate response by the State of Vermont represents a "long standing problem for many years with the APS." Gordon said the problem reflects an "inadequate commitment of resources," by the State that "crosses administrations."
According to Gordon, "the State has been pretty open that it has not followed its own guidelines." Gordon said that "with the economic downturn things got worse as state government was downsized." Saying his Agency "has been talking with the State for five years," about enforcement, Gordon said a year ago there were four investigators working for the State investigating elder abuse and there are now 12 investigators. "They've been able to clear up a lot of the backlog" Gordon noted, adding the increased number of investigators has made "responses more timely."
Doug Racine, is the Secretary of the Agency of Human services, which oversees DAIL, acknowledges there have been problems and says former Governor Jim Douglas left DAIL "in a mess." Racine stated the fact the State only had four investigators on the job when Racine took over was an example of how bad things had gotten.
Dr. Wehry states she believes that since the lawsuit was filed, the State has cleared up a backlog of 400 pending cases of elder abuse and exploitation that were unresolved, and the backlog has now been reduced to zero. She said a year or two ago, the APS did not even have the ability to track pending cases and could not check on the status of a case. New software programming has been installed to help manage case investigations.
Gordon says the investigation of abuse is not as cut and dry as a criminal investigation by the police, and it may take many months before an investigation is completed. One statistic cited by Gordon is that eight or nine out of ten cases of elder abuse involve a family member "or a person known to the victim." Because of theses factors, elder abuse cases are "hard to prosecute" and because family members are often involved in the abuse, "for every report of abuse that's made, there are 23 events not reported."
On occasion, caregivers may abuse an elderly person by diverting medicine away from the patient and abusing the diverted medication. In all of these areas of elder abuse, it is the state's duty to respond to allegations of abuse, investigate them and, if their is a problem, implement a plan to resolve the situations. Individuals found to have abused the elderly are put on an Adult Abuse Registry which is used by nursing homes and adult day services to avoid hiring employees assiociated with elder abuse.
SOURCE: The Orleans County Record
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By James Jardine
Staff Writer
4/18/2012
The State of Vermont has begun addressing complaints of poor performance against the agency responsible for investigating and resolving claims of exploitation and abuse against vulnerable adults, according to Dr. Susan Wehry, the Commissioner of the Dept. of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living (DAIL).
Wehry stated in a recent interview that allegations contained in a recent lawsuit against the State have largely been addressed and resolved. The suit charged that Adult Protective Services (APS), part of the DAIL, failed to commence investigations within 48 hours of receiving complaints of elder abuse or exploitation, failed to complete investigations in a timely manner and failed to offer or arrange protective services when necessary.
According to the suit, "Hundreds of reports of abuse, neglect and exploitation wait for months before being investigated."
The suit, brought in Washington Superior Court against the Vermont Agency of Human Services by two individuals -- the Community of Vermont Elders and an organization named Disability Rights Vermont -- leveled the charges against the DAIL.
The Complaint, filed in December, 2011, led to a decision by Judge Michael Kurpersmith that dismissed the two individuals as parties to the complaint and dismissed a breach of contract claim contained in the suit. Judge Kupersmith will give Plaintiffs until May 7 to refile a mandamus claim because the original claim seeking an order failed to state a claim.
Ken Gordon, Director of the Area Agency on Aging in St. Johnsbury, said the allegations of an inadequate response by the State of Vermont represents a "long standing problem for many years with the APS." Gordon said the problem reflects an "inadequate commitment of resources," by the State that "crosses administrations."
According to Gordon, "the State has been pretty open that it has not followed its own guidelines." Gordon said that "with the economic downturn things got worse as state government was downsized." Saying his Agency "has been talking with the State for five years," about enforcement, Gordon said a year ago there were four investigators working for the State investigating elder abuse and there are now 12 investigators. "They've been able to clear up a lot of the backlog" Gordon noted, adding the increased number of investigators has made "responses more timely."
Doug Racine, is the Secretary of the Agency of Human services, which oversees DAIL, acknowledges there have been problems and says former Governor Jim Douglas left DAIL "in a mess." Racine stated the fact the State only had four investigators on the job when Racine took over was an example of how bad things had gotten.
Dr. Wehry states she believes that since the lawsuit was filed, the State has cleared up a backlog of 400 pending cases of elder abuse and exploitation that were unresolved, and the backlog has now been reduced to zero. She said a year or two ago, the APS did not even have the ability to track pending cases and could not check on the status of a case. New software programming has been installed to help manage case investigations.
Gordon says the investigation of abuse is not as cut and dry as a criminal investigation by the police, and it may take many months before an investigation is completed. One statistic cited by Gordon is that eight or nine out of ten cases of elder abuse involve a family member "or a person known to the victim." Because of theses factors, elder abuse cases are "hard to prosecute" and because family members are often involved in the abuse, "for every report of abuse that's made, there are 23 events not reported."
On occasion, caregivers may abuse an elderly person by diverting medicine away from the patient and abusing the diverted medication. In all of these areas of elder abuse, it is the state's duty to respond to allegations of abuse, investigate them and, if their is a problem, implement a plan to resolve the situations. Individuals found to have abused the elderly are put on an Adult Abuse Registry which is used by nursing homes and adult day services to avoid hiring employees assiociated with elder abuse.
SOURCE: The Orleans County Record
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April 20, 2012
North Oakland Senior Center: April 28 Forum for Elderly and their Caregivers (USA)
North Oakland Senior Center hosts April 28 forum for elderly and their caregivers
By Angela Woodall
Oakland Tribune
04/18/2012
Information and advice for elderly people and their caregivers about planning for the future will be available at a free event April 28 at the North Oakland Senior Center.
The "Planning and Caring for Aging Loved Ones" forum from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. will offer panel discussions about technology and home care for seniors, as well as several workshops.
The first of those workshops focuses on health care reform and Medicare and will cover topics including prescription drug coverage and changes to Medicare Advantage plans. Another workshop covers advanced directives for medical care, senior fraud concerns and reporting of elder abuse and neglect, among other topics.
The "Healthy Eating and Living" workshop provides basic information about aging and challenges such as dementia and Alzheimer's disease, as well as healthy living and preparing for emergencies.
Representatives from community organizations will be on hand during a resource fair to provide information and referrals. A complementary lunch will be served at noon.
Registration begins 8:30 a.m. but preregistration is strongly encouraged online at http://planningandcaringoakland.eventbrite.com. For more information, call 510-272-6686 or email aisha.brown@acgov.org. The North Oakland Senior Center is located at 5714 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Oakland.
SOURCE: The Mercury News
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By Angela Woodall
Oakland Tribune
04/18/2012
Information and advice for elderly people and their caregivers about planning for the future will be available at a free event April 28 at the North Oakland Senior Center.
The "Planning and Caring for Aging Loved Ones" forum from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. will offer panel discussions about technology and home care for seniors, as well as several workshops.
The first of those workshops focuses on health care reform and Medicare and will cover topics including prescription drug coverage and changes to Medicare Advantage plans. Another workshop covers advanced directives for medical care, senior fraud concerns and reporting of elder abuse and neglect, among other topics.
The "Healthy Eating and Living" workshop provides basic information about aging and challenges such as dementia and Alzheimer's disease, as well as healthy living and preparing for emergencies.
Representatives from community organizations will be on hand during a resource fair to provide information and referrals. A complementary lunch will be served at noon.
Registration begins 8:30 a.m. but preregistration is strongly encouraged online at http://planningandcaringoakland.eventbrite.com. For more information, call 510-272-6686 or email aisha.brown@acgov.org. The North Oakland Senior Center is located at 5714 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Oakland.
SOURCE: The Mercury News
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California Investigators Allegedly Took Bribes and Ignored Elder Abuse (CA. USA)
California investigators allegedly took bribes & ignored elder abuse
By Linda Kincaid
Senior Issues Examiner
April 18, 2012
San Diego County investigators allegedly took bribes to ignore violations in residential care facilities. San Bernardino County investigators allowed abuse to continue for over a year, according to their own records.
In San Diego County, CBS8.com broke the news that Community Care Licensing Division (CCLD) employees were under investigation for accepting bribes.
Officials confirm the employment of three state inspectors has been terminated after they were accused of taking thousands of dollars in bribes from operators of local residential care facilities for the elderly.
Records released to CBS8.com focused on Ambassador Senior Retreat in Mira Mesa.
Court records show the operator of the facility, Iris Ramirez, admitted to giving the inspector $2,800 in cash, and paying $1,044 for the inspector's vacation flight to the Philippines.
SOURCE: The Examiner
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By Linda Kincaid
Senior Issues Examiner
April 18, 2012
San Diego County investigators allegedly took bribes to ignore violations in residential care facilities. San Bernardino County investigators allowed abuse to continue for over a year, according to their own records.
In San Diego County, CBS8.com broke the news that Community Care Licensing Division (CCLD) employees were under investigation for accepting bribes.
Officials confirm the employment of three state inspectors has been terminated after they were accused of taking thousands of dollars in bribes from operators of local residential care facilities for the elderly.
Records released to CBS8.com focused on Ambassador Senior Retreat in Mira Mesa.
Court records show the operator of the facility, Iris Ramirez, admitted to giving the inspector $2,800 in cash, and paying $1,044 for the inspector's vacation flight to the Philippines.
SOURCE: The Examiner
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PM to Push Home Care for the Elderly (AUSTRALIA)
By Michelle Grattan
April 20, 2012
TODAY'S federal government aged care blueprint will provide $268.4 million over five years for dementia, with a new supplement giving financial help to people receiving home care packages and residential care.
The supplement will add $1341 to the assistance for an elderly full pensioner at home receiving a current government subsidy of $13,406 a year and making a co-contribution of $1800. It will cost $164.3 million of the dementia funds. But the dementia funding, which is not all new money, falls well short of the extra $500 million called for by Alzheimer's Australia this month.
With nearly 1 million Australians expected to have dementia by 2050, there will be more support for timely diagnosis and a stronger focus on those who get the disease at a young age.
The aged care plan, designed to keep more old people in their homes and ensure people are not forced into a fire sale of their house if they have to go into a nursing home, is a major plank in the government's reform agenda.
The package will swing the system towards users paying and promoting greater fairness by expanding means testing.
It is worth several billion dollars but is substantially funded by a rearrangement of existing money. The government has said it has not sought to make overall budget savings from aged care.
The government will promise a major increase in the number of home care packages, allowing tens of thousands more older people to remain at home while receiving care.
Abridged
SOURCE: The Age, Au
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April 20, 2012
TODAY'S federal government aged care blueprint will provide $268.4 million over five years for dementia, with a new supplement giving financial help to people receiving home care packages and residential care.
The supplement will add $1341 to the assistance for an elderly full pensioner at home receiving a current government subsidy of $13,406 a year and making a co-contribution of $1800. It will cost $164.3 million of the dementia funds. But the dementia funding, which is not all new money, falls well short of the extra $500 million called for by Alzheimer's Australia this month.
With nearly 1 million Australians expected to have dementia by 2050, there will be more support for timely diagnosis and a stronger focus on those who get the disease at a young age.
The aged care plan, designed to keep more old people in their homes and ensure people are not forced into a fire sale of their house if they have to go into a nursing home, is a major plank in the government's reform agenda.
The package will swing the system towards users paying and promoting greater fairness by expanding means testing.
It is worth several billion dollars but is substantially funded by a rearrangement of existing money. The government has said it has not sought to make overall budget savings from aged care.
The government will promise a major increase in the number of home care packages, allowing tens of thousands more older people to remain at home while receiving care.
Abridged
SOURCE: The Age, Au
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April 19, 2012
Jamaican Lottery Scams Spread Despite US Crackdown
Jamaican lottery scams spread despite US crackdown
By DAVID MCFADDEN
The Associated Press
April 17, 2012
MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica
The 88-year-old retired Coast Guard officer hadn't been outside the U.S. in decades. Yet phone calls started pouring in from Jamaica, dangling the prospects of huge winnings from an international lottery that he had won.
There was a catch, of course. He had to send a check to pay the tax on his winnings. He wired the money to Jamaica. Soon he was ensnared in a scam that may cost him his home in an assisted living facility outside Seattle.
"It's been heartbreaking," said Ruth Wilson, a Seattle woman trying to clean up the financial fiasco that she said has cost her frail parents about $250,000, nearly all of their retirement savings.
U.S. officials say that is just a tiny fraction that cross-border lottery frauds haul in each year, disproportionately from the elderly. The schemes are so entrenched in Jamaica that some American police departments have begun warning elderly residents to be wary of calls from Jamaica's 876 telephone code, which resembles the three-digit area codes used in the United States.
"These scammers are very persistent and in some cases verbally abusive, threatening to harm victims if they do not send money," said Maj. Bill King of Maine's York County Sheriff's Office, which late last month launched a campaign called "Beware: Scams from Area Code 876."
Police on the Caribbean island say there are visible signs of the fraud-spawned riches in the hot spot for the gangs, St. James parish, where some twentysomething Jamaicans from modest backgrounds are living very well for people without any obvious job or source of income. Three-story concrete mansions and luxury cars have increasingly popped up in the parish, which includes the resort city of Montego Bay.
The Jamaican and U.S. governments set up a task force three years ago to tackle the crime. But, if anything, the problem only seems to have gotten worse in Jamaica, where organized, violent gangs are deeply entrenched
Complaints from American citizens about Jamaican lottery fraud soared from 1,867 in 2007 to about 30,000 last year, and most incidents go unreported out of fear or embarrassment, according to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.
The task force, led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, has conducted about 400 investigations and made roughly 115 arrests. U.S. officials say they are receiving cooperation from the Jamaican government, but cases are progressing slowly.
Abridged
SOURCE: The Business Week
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By DAVID MCFADDEN
The Associated Press
April 17, 2012
MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica
The 88-year-old retired Coast Guard officer hadn't been outside the U.S. in decades. Yet phone calls started pouring in from Jamaica, dangling the prospects of huge winnings from an international lottery that he had won.
There was a catch, of course. He had to send a check to pay the tax on his winnings. He wired the money to Jamaica. Soon he was ensnared in a scam that may cost him his home in an assisted living facility outside Seattle.
"It's been heartbreaking," said Ruth Wilson, a Seattle woman trying to clean up the financial fiasco that she said has cost her frail parents about $250,000, nearly all of their retirement savings.
U.S. officials say that is just a tiny fraction that cross-border lottery frauds haul in each year, disproportionately from the elderly. The schemes are so entrenched in Jamaica that some American police departments have begun warning elderly residents to be wary of calls from Jamaica's 876 telephone code, which resembles the three-digit area codes used in the United States.
"These scammers are very persistent and in some cases verbally abusive, threatening to harm victims if they do not send money," said Maj. Bill King of Maine's York County Sheriff's Office, which late last month launched a campaign called "Beware: Scams from Area Code 876."
Police on the Caribbean island say there are visible signs of the fraud-spawned riches in the hot spot for the gangs, St. James parish, where some twentysomething Jamaicans from modest backgrounds are living very well for people without any obvious job or source of income. Three-story concrete mansions and luxury cars have increasingly popped up in the parish, which includes the resort city of Montego Bay.
The Jamaican and U.S. governments set up a task force three years ago to tackle the crime. But, if anything, the problem only seems to have gotten worse in Jamaica, where organized, violent gangs are deeply entrenched
Complaints from American citizens about Jamaican lottery fraud soared from 1,867 in 2007 to about 30,000 last year, and most incidents go unreported out of fear or embarrassment, according to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.
The task force, led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, has conducted about 400 investigations and made roughly 115 arrests. U.S. officials say they are receiving cooperation from the Jamaican government, but cases are progressing slowly.
Abridged
SOURCE: The Business Week
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Nephew Preyed on Doncaster Woman (AUSTRALIA)
Nephew preyed on Doncaster woman
18 Apr 12
by Shaun Turton
AUTHORITIES have pledged their support for victims of elder abuse after a court heard a Doncaster woman lived in fear of her heroin-addicted nephew.
Peter Georgiou successfully appealed his 15-month sentence in the Melbourne County Court last week after breaching an intervention order and theft.
The court heard that, after losing his job as a roof tiler, Georgiou used his aunt, 74, for cash, her car and a place to stay.
His non-parole period was reduced from a year to nine months.
The pensioner, whom the Manningham Leader has chosen not to identify, was so stressed she passed blood.
Georgiou refused to take her to a doctor.
The court heard that the woman once gave her nephew $400 so he could pay for a moving truck to take his things from her home.
But the truck never showed up and Georgiou would not leave.
Speaking from her home, the woman said she still cared for and loved her nephew but could not continue to live in fear.
“I was scared if I didn’t give him money, he’d rob someone,” she said.
Doncaster detective Sgt Vasilios Chrisant, who handled the case, said older people deserved to feel safe around their family.
Seniors Rights Victoria (SRV) Jenny Blakey said elder abuse ranged from intimidation and violence to people with good intentions making overriding decisions on a person’s behalf.
Doncare’s Helen McKenzie said she suspected elder abuse was a hidden problem in Manningham.
“Often it’s treated as a family secret,” Ms McKenzie said.
In 2010-11, 1592 called SRV’s helpline about elder abuse.
Details: 1300 368 821.
SOURCE: The Manningham Leader
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18 Apr 12
by Shaun Turton
AUTHORITIES have pledged their support for victims of elder abuse after a court heard a Doncaster woman lived in fear of her heroin-addicted nephew.
Peter Georgiou successfully appealed his 15-month sentence in the Melbourne County Court last week after breaching an intervention order and theft.
The court heard that, after losing his job as a roof tiler, Georgiou used his aunt, 74, for cash, her car and a place to stay.
His non-parole period was reduced from a year to nine months.
The pensioner, whom the Manningham Leader has chosen not to identify, was so stressed she passed blood.
Georgiou refused to take her to a doctor.
The court heard that the woman once gave her nephew $400 so he could pay for a moving truck to take his things from her home.
But the truck never showed up and Georgiou would not leave.
Speaking from her home, the woman said she still cared for and loved her nephew but could not continue to live in fear.
“I was scared if I didn’t give him money, he’d rob someone,” she said.
Doncaster detective Sgt Vasilios Chrisant, who handled the case, said older people deserved to feel safe around their family.
Seniors Rights Victoria (SRV) Jenny Blakey said elder abuse ranged from intimidation and violence to people with good intentions making overriding decisions on a person’s behalf.
Doncare’s Helen McKenzie said she suspected elder abuse was a hidden problem in Manningham.
“Often it’s treated as a family secret,” Ms McKenzie said.
In 2010-11, 1592 called SRV’s helpline about elder abuse.
Details: 1300 368 821.
SOURCE: The Manningham Leader
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April 18, 2012
Care Home Operator Arrested on Charges of Theft, Elder Abuse (USA)
April 16, 2012
By Kerry Kavanaugh
The operator of several personal care homes is now in jail, accused stealing money from her mentally disabled residents.
Gwinnett County Police told Channel 2 Action News they also discovered residents were living in unsanitary conditions at the homes.
Police told Channel 2's Kerry Kavanaugh they were investigating Sema Vijayi's bank records for the past five months and believe she stole at least $10,000 from roughly 30 residents.
Investigators obtained search warrants for all seven of Vijayi's personal care home locations spanning across Lawrenceville and also her own home in Snellville.
Police said they found disabled residents were paying to live in her basement.
Kavanaugh spoke to one woman, who said her sister one was of them, yet she had no idea why the state removed her from the home and sent her somewhere else.
"My sister was actually in her care and we had to find out about it on the news," Lynne Cruz said.
Cruz told Kavanaugh she had no idea her sister's caretaker was arrested last Wednesday until her family saw Vijayi's mug shot on Channel 2 Action News on Sunday.
Cruz said Vijayi had total control of all the money her sister received through Social Security.
Police said as the home operator, Vijayi was entitled to some of the money to cover the cost of care, but Vijayi was keeping all of it.
When police searched the homes last week they said their case against Vijayi got even bigger.
"We were able to find homes where the cleanliness wasn't where it should be. There was one report where water was shut off in the home for five days," Detective James Flanagan with the Gwinnett County Police Department said.
Harold Holcombe, who is representing Vijay, says she is "completely innocent."
He says the $10,000 she was accused of siphoning from her business account was used for her business vehicle, her corporate American Express card and other business expenses.
Holcombe also said the five facilities that police have identified as unlicensed personal care homes are actually independent living homes, which operate under different standards.
"They pretty much destroyed her reputation and her life with this," Holcombe said.
Flanagan said the state was to remove and relocate the residents. But Kavanaugh found many residents still at a location on Bob Hannah Circle.
Workers there denied any residents were in the home.
Kavanaugh said she could see residents through the windows of the home. One even came outside to speak to her.
Lynne Cruz said she eventually tracked her sister down at the home on Bob Hannah Circle as well. She believes her sister went without her medication or a shower for days.
Kavanaugh is waiting on a response from the Department of Human Services to find out about the care the residents are currently receiving.
Vijayi is expected to appear in court on Thursday. She is currently charged with theft and elder abuse. Police anticipate the list of charges will grow
SOURCE: WSBTV
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