Since the late 1970s when Congressman Claude Pepper held widely publicized hearings on the mistreatment of the elderly, policy makers and practitioners have sought ways to protect older Americans from physical, psychological, and financial abuse. Yet, during the last 20 years fewer than 50 articles have addressed the shameful problem that abusersâ€"and sometimes the abused themselvesâ€"want to conceal. Elder Mistreatment in an Aging America takes a giant step toward broadening our understanding of the mistreatment of the elderly and recommends specific research and funding strategies that can be used to deepen it. The book includes a discussion of the conceptual, methodological, and logistical issues needed to create a solid research base as well as the ethical concerns that must be considered when working with older subjects. It also looks at problems in determination of a report's reliability and the role of physicians, EMTs, and others who are among the first to recognize situations of mistreatment. Elder Mistreatment in an Aging America will be of interest to anyone concerned about the elderly and ways to intervene when abuse is suspected, including family members, caregivers, and advocates for the elderly. It will also be of interest to researchers, research sponsors, and policy makers who need to know how to advance our knowledge of this problem.

Summarizes a national survey of local prosecutors' experiences with investigating, prosecuting, and providing victim services in elder abuse cases. Also includes case studies of three successful elder abuse programs.

First published in 1999. Research on elder abuse in the United States has made great strides in recent years. As a result, we have been able to define and discover the causes of elder abuse, design tools to assess the risk of abuse, develop and implement treatment and prevention strategies, and evaluate programs for victims and perpetrators. However, this research has been derived from studies whose subjects were primarily Caucasian. This is not because elder abuse does not take place in minority communities, but rather because researchers wanted first to study the issue in its broadest sense.

This book provides a global comprehensive and systematic state-of-the review of this field that fills the gaps between research, practice, and policy. The book addresses the epidemiology of the issue and the global prevalence of elder abuse in both developed and developing countries, which synthesizes the most up-to-date data about risk factors and protective factors associated with elder abuse and consequences of elder abuse; clinical assessment and management of elder abuse, including screening, detection, management of elder abuse, and the role of decision making capacity and forensic approaches; practice and services that describe adult protective services, legal justice, elder court systems, and guardianship system; elder abuse and culture, which provides more in-depth anthropological and ethnographic experiences; policy issues, which highlights the elder justice movement, GAO reports, elder justice act, older American act and elder justice coordinating council; and future directions, which explores translational research, practice, education/training and policy issues surrounding elder abuse. Elder Abuse: Research, Practice and Policy is a useful resource for aging researchers, social services, general internists, family medicine physicians, social workers, nurses, and legal professionals interested in the issues of elder abuse.

Each day, news reports cite instances of older adults across the U.S. being abused, denied needed care, or financially exploited, often by those they depend on. This report contains info. on: (1) existing estimates of the extent of elder abuse and their quality; (2) factors associated with elder abuse and its impact on victims; (3) characteristics and challenges of state Adult Protective Services (APS) responsible for addressing elder abuse; and (4) federal support and leadership in this area. The auditor visited six states and surveyed state APS programs; reviewed federal laws and regulations; and interviewed federal officials, researchers, and elder abuse experts. Includes recommendations. Charts and tables. This is a print on demand report.