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Objectives: To describe the Texas Elder Abuse and Mistreatment Institute Forensic Assessment Center Network (TEAM‐FACN), a novel statewide elder mistreatment (EM) virtual assessment program using low‐cost videophone technology and innovative web‐based coordination to connect an Adult Protective Services (APS) agency and its clients, rural and urban, to a centralized geriatric and EM expert medical team for virtual in‐home assessments. Design: Descriptive. Setting: Community. Participants: APS clients aged 18 and older. Intervention: Virtual and in‐home assessments. Measurements: Program use and type of services provided. Results: In the first 8 months, 300 APS clients from all regions of the state were referred for assessment. Outcomes realized include a quadrupling in number of client assessments. TEAM‐FACN physicians provided an average of 2 services, which included 216 mental health assessments, with 123 conducted virtually; 42 medical assessments; 45 guardianship filings; 5 employee misconduct registry reviews; and more than 230 interdisciplinary team meetings to discuss case findings, safety plans, and medical and social interventions. Conclusion: TEAM‐FACN provides an innovative and viable way to increase access of urban and rural older and adults who are being mistreated to expert geriatric and EM protective service assessments. J Am Geriatr Soc 67:151–155, 2019. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the research conducted by Fernandez and colleague regarding the psychological, social effects and higher mortality rate experienced by older people during times of disaster in the U.S.. Results show that impaired physical mobility, diminished sensory awareness, preexisting health conditions and social and economic restraints increased the vulnerability of frail older people during calamities. It is suggested that authorities should have a pre-disaster and post-disaster planning to ensure the safety of vulnerable and frail elders. Factors to be considered include immediate medical care, physical and social needs and shelter settings.

Looks at law and legislation to prevent elder abuse in the U.S. Estimated incidence of elder abuse in the U.S. each year; Goal of the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to address the problem of elder abuse in the U.S.; Critique of the enforcement of Adult Protective Services (APS) law in U.S. states; Impact of a task force in Delaware on the detection and prevention of elder abuse; Description of the Texas Elder Abuse and Mistreatment Institute (TEAM), which offers intervention in cases of elder abuse in cooperation with other human service agencies.