Search

Includes index.

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 abusers—and sometimes the abused themselves—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.

Learn to detect elder abuseand provide the help that your neglected or abused elderly clients need! Even to clinicians experienced in managing difficult client situations, elder abuse is perplexing, complex, and ethically charged. This kind of abuse can be hard to detect, with its subtle manifestations and indicators that could just as easily reflect other problems or illnesses. It can seem impossible to control, particularly when the victim refuses help or denies the seriousness of mistreatment. Moreover, decision-making when dealing with interventions for elder abuse is rarely easy and is frequently clouded by ethical dilemmas. The Clinical Management of Elder Abuse can help. This essential guide for present and future clinicians provides you with multidisciplinary perspectives on detecting elder abuse situations and interventions that can make a real difference in the lives of clients. Three case studies are presented and then examined from the professional perspectives of an attorney, a physician, a nurse, and a social worker. What these professionals have to say will leave you better informed about the dynamics and complexities of elder abuse, about important steps that must be taken in the clinical management of elder abuse, and about the importance and application of multidisciplinary teams in elder abuse work. The handy figures, lists of definitions, and tables you'll find in this well-referenced book make important concepts and complex information easy to access and understand. The Clinical Management of Elder Abuse shows how professionals in the above disciplines can address the effects of elder abuse, which may manifest as: physical effects, including pain and injury, sleep disturbances, eating problems, and headaches behavioral effects, including anger, helplessness, reduced coping abilities, and suicidal actions psychological effects, which can be wide-ranging and include denial, fear, anxiety, and depression social effects, such as increased dependence, withdrawal, and lessened contact with the outside world As the baby boom generation ages, incidents of elder abuse are certain to continue to increase. Whether you are a student, an educator, an experienced clinician, or a novice in the field, The Clinical Management of Elder Abuse is a resource that you'll return to again and again as you work to improve the lives of this important, growing population.

This volume explores the concept of safety as applied in the long term care context. Chapters examine the way in which the quest for safety may work either synergistically or adversely upon other worthy social goals. Among the initiatives considered are promoting the decision-making autonomy of patients/clients and their surrogates, enhancing the quality of care and quality of life available to long term care residents, and providing fair compensation for injured victims when serious harm occurs. Questions addressed that are of concern to legal and ethical theorists, social science researchers, and patient/client advocates include: To what extent do litigation and/or regulation accomplish the safety and other legitimate objectives of public policy in the long term care arena? Do the costs of various approaches outweigh the benefits in promoting safety and other goals? How do litigation and regulation compare with alternative approaches to achieving the same goals, in terms of an acceptable cost/benefit balance?

Title from e-book title screen (viewed on Nov. 9, 2004)

The World Health Organization launched the first World report on violence and health on October 3rd, 2002. Since then, more than 30 governments have organized national launches or policy discussions about the Report, and resolutions endorsing the Report and calling for its implementation have been passed in a number of fora, such as the World Health Assembly, the United Nations High Commission on Human Rights, and the African Union. The World report on violence and health is the first comprehensive review of the problem of violence on a global scale - what it is, whom it affects and what can be done about it. Three years in the making, the report benefited from the participation of over 160 experts from around the world, receiving both peer-review from scientists and contributions and comments from representatives of all the world's regions.

Overall, the book provides a valuable insight into attitudes to and perceptions of older people. It is especially helpful to have a rigorously researched sociological text that covers the interplay between societies and the killing older members who have contributed, developed and supported those societies. Its usefulness to the literature on abuse is clear... I would recommend this book to readers.'- Journal of Elder Abuse & Neglect'This book goes beyond the abuse of the elderly, and'is about, bluntly, the killing of old people'(p.11). For sociologists, criminologists, social workers and carers of the elderly, this book is well worth reading as it is thought provoking and therefore refreshing.'- International Journal of the Sociology of Law'This is a thought-provoking book. It uses a variety of strategies to forward its central thesis: older people have always been regarded as a residual group by other members of society presumed to be more productive… This book is a good read and has an important point to make.'- European Journal of Social Work'This book addresses elderly homicide and euthanasia, and puts it in a historial and social context. Mike Brogden provides a useful and appropriate critique on the concept of geronticide. The book does assist with the urgency of the need for a major cultural shift in the way we perceive and treat the elderly.'- International Journal of the Sociology of Law'This dramatically titled book is a powerful one... Geronticide is a modern term but the concept is ages old. Brogden takes us via history, literature, science, religion, demography, economics, sociology, anthropology, social history and the law... This is not a book for holiday packing but a potent one to remind us of the pervasive and pernicious influence of ageism; society's and our own.'-International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry'Mike Brogden's book on geronticide is both thought-provoking and an eye-opener. His work is a comprehensive study into one of the greatest and most difficult challenges facing our modern world. How will our society cope with the rapidly growing population of the oldest old, and the care for the increasing numbers of old, seriously ill and dying people. The book deals with the sociological, anthropological and literary aspects, revealing the fact that killing older people, on either a voluntary or involuntary basis, has been a theme throughout history... My sincere wish is that this very powerful and useful book should reach all the politicians, administrators and others involved in planning the future with regards to older people, all over the world, in the hope that it would enable us to understand the serious consequences our decisions may have for a very valuable but vulnerable group of still equally worthy members of our society.'- British Journal of Social Work'We live in a different world after Harold Shipman. The trial and the resulting public anxiety about trust in professionals has meant that the deliberate and systematic killing of older people is no longer seen as remote or part of other societies. Mike Brogden's overview of the subject starts and finishes with Shipman, but his main discussion explores how geronticide has been and continues to be a feature of'care'for the aged... This book, then, is compelling on its'level of sweeping themes and illuminating in its'often harrowing reports of individual abuse and death. It may also encourage further reading on this subject. At a time when the National Service Framework has made strong calls for anti-ageist values, this book provides evidence of the excess of ageism.'- Community CareThe increasing elderly population poses many economic and ethical questions for modern society. One of the most topical and controversial of these is the debate about euthanasia. Drawing on a variety of historical, contemporary, anthropological a

The findings from the study are a significant contribution to the growing international body of knowledge on the abuse of vulnerable adults. Pritchard's work is rooted in anti-ageist practice. Her passion and commitment to older people is evident throughout this book and she tackles the assumptions made about older men effectively.'- Social Work Education'The purpose of this book is to give attention to the problems of elder men in abusive situations, so that those in helping capacities may better understand these men and the help that they need. The use of case illustrations is very effective in the discussion of reactions and responses to abuse. In some cases the, the negligence in follow through is noted for professionals working with the elderly persons. Importantly, too, the author describes her efforts in creating a milieu within focus groups for the men to articulate feelings about their experiences... Jacki Pritchard has written a book that can well be considered an important antecedent effort in identifying a problem that heretofore has not received needed attention... [An] informative and sensitively written book'- Journal of Elder Abuse and Neglect'This is a neat little book, and I recommend it... Jacki Pritchard is clearly an expert in the field. As a former social worker, she brings practicality and a common-sense approach to her research, which `rings true'to the jobbing clinician. Moreover, Ms Pritchard writes clearly and concisely, and her quantitative and qualitative research techniques pass muster.'- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry'This book is a useful addition to our knowledge of the subject, as it covers the abuse experienced by older men, a topic that until recently has received little attention... This is an important book for practitioners working in the field of elder abuse. Whilst the research is not representative, the rich descriptions of the respondents'experiences are full of information and emotion. The book is also useful as a first step from which other, in-depth studies can be undertaken into abuse as experienced by older men... Pritchard's style is conversational and accessible. Material is introduced in a friendly and informal way.'- Ageing & SocietyOlder men may, like older women, be victims of abuse - yet there has been little in either research or service provision to reflect this. Drawing on in-depth interviews with twelve older men who have experienced abuse, Jacki Pritchard presents much-needed practical guidance for care professionals, managers and policy makers working with this group.She describes the different kinds of abuse experienced by the men, which can include not only financial, physical, emotional and sexual abuse, but also physical and emotional neglect, and goes on to establish in detail the needs of older male victims of abuse and how they should be addressed. As well as having their emotional needs and their need for support over past abuse met, the men need a physical place of safety, medical care and the cultural awareness and continuous support of professional carers.This book presents clear guidelines for both the initial assessment of need and for good practice in the long term. It will enable all those working with older people to understand better the phenomenon of the abuse of older men and to apply this understanding to effective service provision.

This book examines and analyses the experiences of older people as both victims and perpetrators of crime. Drawing upon a wealth of research from British and North American sources, the authors detail the historical experience of the elderly as victims, the extent of present-day criminal victimisation in the home and institutions, the social theories which attempt to explain that experience, and the types of resolution available.The book also addresses the experiences of elderly people in the criminal justice process - the offences to which they are prone, and the implications for penal policy of an increase in the elderly penal population.Crime, Abuse and the Elderly breaks new ground in its focus on the experiences of elderly people as criminal victims in private space, its insistence on a proper engagement of criminology with crimes involving older people, and in its argument that much so-called abuse can be explained criminologically and should be dealt with by the criminal justice system rather than by treatment and welfare agencies. It will be essential reading for students, academics and professionals concerned with the experiences of the elderly.

Elder Abuse and Neglect in Residential Settings: Different National Backgrounds and Similar Responses contains insights and examples from other countries where elder abuse and neglect have been recognized as an issue requiring social policy attention. Nursing home employees as well as professionals and policymakers will explore the physical as well as the psychological aspects of neglect in nursing homes. Elder Abuse and Neglect in Residential Settings discusses deliberate physical abuse and more common forms of neglect and abuse, such as bedsores, poor nutrition, improper medication, and vermin infestation. Let this informative guide help you recognize the causes of elder abuse and neglect in order to prevent the same problems in your nursing home.Examining nursing home settings in America, Canada, England, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and South Africa to bring you firsthand accounts of the problems of elder abuse on a multicultural level. It also examines reasons for abuse and neglect, such as poor wages, long hours, low job prestige of nurses aides, and high exhaustion levels that have led to abuse and neglect by even the most caring individual. Through Elder Abuse and Neglect in Residential Settings, you will discover what factors directly correlate to the abuse and neglect of patients by: examining the high turnover rates of the lower-paid nurses aides understanding that well-qualified staff do not choose to work in nursing homes and that often abuse and neglect are committed by nurses aides gaining insight into the risks of physical assault and verbal abuse by patients that nurses aides may endure everyday exploring the psychological aspects of neglect in nursing homes such as, uncleanliness, the lack of attractiveness in the physical environment, inadequate diet, infantilization, and passive neglect, and what can be done to prevent these behaviorsElder Abuse and Neglect in Residential Settings discusses the elements that are significant to the future and quality of residential care. From this book, you will understand the importance of considering the characteristics of the patients and staff as well as the importance of developing gender-integrated and multicultural services. Elder Abuse and Neglect in Residential Settings will prove to be essential in your understanding of the worldwide problem of elder abuse and neglect in residential care and help you alleviate it.