Types of Elder Abuse
- Physical abuse
- The abuser hurts or injures the person. This may involve physical coercion, confinement, slapping, bruising, sexual molesting, burning, restraining, and pushing.
- Passive neglect
- The caregiver unintentionally fails to provide proper care.
- Active neglect
- The caregiver intentionally does not take care of the elderly person. Abandoning the person or denying food, medicine, or personal hygiene may inflict physical and emotional stress or injury.
- Psychological abuse
- The caregiver may inflict mental anguish by name calling, insulting, ignoring, humiliating, frightening, threatening, isolating, or belittling the elderly person.
- Financial abuse
- The abuser may exploit the elderly person by using funds, property, or other assets for personal gain.
Some Facts about Abuse in Later Life
- Two-thirds of elder abuse and neglect victims are women.
- The median age of elder victims is 78 years.
- One-third of all elder victims are abused by their children.
- Neglect is the most common form of elder abuse in domestic settings accounting for over 50% of all reported incidents.
