Elder abuse includes emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, abandonment, and exploitation of elderlies. Some of the perpetrators include family members, spouses, and even staff members of assisted living and nursing homes. Willful deprivation is one type of elder abuse. This means that an elder is denied medical care, shelter, medication, and even physical assistance. This exposes these individuals to emotional, physical, or mental harm of some kind. Sometimes perpetrators rob the elderly individual of their financial assets. This is a serious problem that is consistently all over the news.
Important Statistics
According to recent studies, 1 out of every 10 Americans over the age of 60 have endured some type of elder abuse. When you do the math, this means about 5 million elders are abused in some way every single year. What is even worse is that only about 1 in every 14 cases is actually reported to the police. This means the perpetrators are getting away with these terrible crimes.
The abuses of these older adults are both women and men and a lot of times they are either family members or nursing home staff. 90% of elder neglect and abuse is conducted by a member of the family and 2/3 of the perpetrators are spouses or children of the elderly adult. What makes these individuals more at risk for some type of abuse is typically mental impairment and social isolation. Many of these individuals suffer from Alzheimer’s disease or dementia. There is an increased risk of abuse to elderly adults who suffer from some type of disability.
Ed Dudensing Attorney at Law is a highly experienced elder neglect attorney who can help your elderly family member when one of these crimes take place. It is important that you seek legal assistance as soon as possible to ensure a better chance of true justice.
