Elder Abuse: An Emerging Public Health Problem

Elder abuse and neglect constitute an emergent threat to America's public health. These forms of maltreatment occur in institutional and community settings, fostering inhumane living conditions, damaging mental health, and increasing incidents of illness, injury, and mortality among the elderly. It has been projected that the incidence of abuse and neglect may increase as the aging of the Baby Boom generation enlarges the size of America's elderly population. Such an increase would also entail further cumulative reductions in the health and well-being of this population. Despite the ominous nature of these changes, there are fields of knowledge and practice with the insights, skills and abilities to address their occurrence and consequences. This presentation by NAPSA is one of four to be delivered on behalf of national organizations (i.e. the National Center for Elder Abuse, the National Institute of Justice, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) that despite their differences in perspectives are united in their effort to prevent, halt, and raise awareness regarding elder abuse and neglect. NAPSA will describe the field of Adult Protective Services (APS) and its role in investigating and protecting elder abuse victims, including its current practices and limitations. NAPSA will also describe its efforts to collect national data on elder abuse, to partner with health care and other systems to address this issue, and to support research, training, public policy initiatives and public awareness efforts on this significant but as yet largely unknown public health problem.