This is a guest post from Tommy Shimokado, focusing on elder abuse and its implications.
“Elder abuse is a violation of human rights and a significant cause of illness, injury, loss of productivity, isolation and despair.” World Health Organization
The dried leaf from an old tree becomes a magnet of negative comments from around the neighborhood. The same leaf that was once praised for converting dangerous carbon dioxide into clean air and exuded life through its rich green color now lies on the ground, discarded and left for useless ; the once awesome oxygen machine maker is now wrongfully profiled because of its looks. The very things we seem to dismiss as useless once again brings value in other meaningful ways If only we could all learn to appreciate the fact that once a dried up leaf becomes mulch ,it becomes quintessential to nature again ,giving strength to newer trees around the globe
The analogy given above represents the cornerstone of this article, which demands for justice and a better understanding of the hundreds of seniors whose lives are shattered by the apathy of a society that overemphasizes youth to the detriment of aging adults. The next step after indifference to seniors may be elder abuse.
As in a comedy show that satires and mocks an award winning drama movie, our society satires and mocks the blunt reality of elder abuse by sugar-coating the actions of the abuser, comments towards seniors, such as: “Eww, she is so old and stupid! He is stubborn and set in his ways! She irritates me!” words bring to plain light the two words that define such a comments to elders: verbal abuse.
Isolation Puts Seniors at Risk
After reading some interesting notes from the website of the National Center of Elder Abuse, and seeing some statistics of seniors being verbally abused, they caught my interest, but I was not the least bit surprised. Verbal abuse is the most seen and known kind of violation against elders. However, to read there is a high percentage of overworked seniors did get my full attention. Furthermore, it happens most often within the very family circle they come from. Consequently, the article mentions as well that elder housing care facilities with unfit personnel to perform adequately the task of senior caring, become another source of negligence and abuse towards seniors. Very seldom is elder abuse reported to the proper authorities and it is very easy to remain under the radar away from authorities. But if you think about it, how hard is to overwork a senior who seeks the feeling of being needed? Or how hard is to isolate a senior from his complaints or make his complaints look like a nonsense rants or demands from an “old timer”. We all need to unveil the truth about elder abuse and we need to do it now.
Speak Up
We live in a society which loves to tackle myths and protect the defenseless. We watch on TV well-funded campaigns against animal abuse, against why Pluto has been down classed to a dwarf planet, against child abuse, and don’t get me wrong, they are in most cases plausible, worth to be written in manifestos and spread all over the world, but what is chokingly upsetting it’s the fact our seniors are being abused, overworked, yelled at and in many cases beaten up, and there is only a 10 percent of cases being brought to justice. YES! Ladies and gentlemen, if someone commits these shameful actions of abuse against seniors, these actions are cataloged as ‘crimes’ and therefore punishable by law. And now before you start nodding your head, I would like to ask you how many times have you witnessed an elder being screamed at or belittled for being unable to understand or accomplish something due to his age limits? How many times have you excused questionable actions against seniors just because who in the world have time to be patient with them?
If your answer is an affirmative one, then you are guilty as charged for covering up an abusive behavior towards a human being. Ignoring makes the problem far worse than the abuse itself. In most cases, seniors will not be heard by the authorities because the very same person who abuses them become the nexus of information among the law and the senior, speaking up and denouncing abusers, brings awareness and hope, ignoring the abuse invigorates the self-given rights abusers tend to think they have over the elderly.
From elders being left alone with a piece of wool to crochet every day to the ones who are overworked because they are the cheapest workforce out there. We need to understand that the situation has become far more serious than what we believe it to be, and again this happens because the voice of the abused is rarely heard from the victim’s perspective. They rely on the abuser to communicate their needs or concerns. Our concrete jungle has become the perfect environment for this to happen, but as it is important to be vigilant and courageous to unmask and eradicate elder abuse, it is quintessential to choose not to ignore and take a personal executive decision to be part of the solution.
Kapok encourages everyone to be part of the crusade to end elder abuse. If you see something, speak up. The following are key phone numbers to contact to report suspected elder abuse through your local Adult Protective Services.
Below, you can find information of hotlines and statistical information can be found
- 1-888-832-3858 or your local department of social services.
- To reach the State Long Term Care Ombudsman Program, telephone 1-804-565-1600.
- If the situation is serious, threatening, or dangerous, call 911 or the local police for immediate help.
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