21 Vulnerable Populations
Elder Neglect and Abuse and Adults at Risk
Elder abuse is a common problem in the United States. Abuse, including neglect and exploitation, is experienced by about 1 in 10 people aged 60 and older who live at home. From 2002 to 2016, more than 643,000 older adults were treated in the emergency department for nonfatal assaults, and over 19,000 homicides occurred. This information is considered an underestimate of the problem because it is limited to those individuals treated in emergency departments and doesn’t include those who do not seek treatment. Victims must decide whether to tell someone they are being hurt or continue being abused by someone they depend upon or care for deeply.9
Elder abuse is defined as an intentional act or failure to act that causes or creates a risk of harm to an older adult. An older adult is defined as someone aged 60 or older. 10 Adults at risk are also considered vulnerable adults at risk for abuse. Adults at risk are defined as adults who have a physical or mental condition that impairs their ability to care for their own needs. 11 Older adults and adults at risk are potentially susceptible to abuse, neglect, or financial exploitation by caregivers or a person they trust. 12 A caregiver is a person who has taken responsibility for all or part of an individual’s care.
The following are types of elder abuse: 13
- Physical abuse: Physical abuse refers to illness, pain, injury, functional impairment, distress, or death as a result of the intentional use of physical force and includes acts such as hitting, kicking, pushing, slapping, and burning. 14
- Sexual abuse: Sexual abuse refers to forced or unwanted sexual interaction of any kind. This may include unwanted sexual contact or penetration or non-contact acts such as sexual harassment.
- Emotional abuse: Emotional abuse refers to verbal or nonverbal behaviors that inflict anguish, mental pain, fear, or distress, such as humiliation or disrespect, verbal and nonverbal threats, harassment, and geographic or interpersonal isolation.
- Neglect: Neglect is the failure to meet the person’s basic needs, including food, water, shelter, clothing, hygiene, and essential medical care.
- Financial abuse: Financial abuse is the illegal, unauthorized, or improper use of money, benefits, belongings, property, or assets for the benefit of someone other than the individual.
- Treatment without consent: Treatment without consent refers to the administration of medication or the performance of psychosurgery, electroconvulsive therapy, or experimental research on an individual who has not provided informed consent.
- Unreasonable confinement or restraint: Unreasonable confinement or restraint refers to the intentional and unnecessary confinement of an individual in a locked room, involuntary separation from their living area, use of physical restraints, or the provision of unnecessary or excessive medication. (This does not include the use of these methods or devices if they conform with state and federal standards governing restraint or seclusion.)
Figure 15.5 Physical Signs of Elder Abuse. Used under Fair Use.
Adult Protective Services
Adult Protective Services are available to provide aid to elder adults and adults at risk who have been abused, neglected, or exploited. Adult Protective Services are services provided to an individual with a developmental disability, degenerative brain disorder, serious mental illness, or other incapacities to keep them safe from abuse, neglect, or financial exploitation; prevent them from experiencing deterioration; or stop them from inflicting harm on themself or another person.
Protective services may include outreach, counseling, and referral for services; coordination of services for individuals; and tracking and follow-up.
| Find resources in your area for reporting elder abuse at the National Adult Protective Services Association website.
Read more about protective services in your state. Here are links to Wisconsin’s Adult Protective Services. Find elder care resources in your community at Eldercare Locator |
Illinois Department of Human Services
Report Fraud, Abuse, or Neglect
To report abuse/neglect of persons with a mental illness or a developmental disability at a DHS-operated facility, call the OIG 24-hour Hotline: 1-800-368-1463 Voice/TTY.
All other calls will be referred to the IDHS Customer Help Line:
1-800-843-6154 / 1-866-324-5553 TTY
Si usted sospecha que un individuo discapacitado ha sido abusado, descuidado o estafado económicamente, repórtelo a la Oficina del Inspector General del DHS al: 1-800-368-1463 Voz/TTY.
Todas las otras llamadas serán transferidas a la Línea de Ayuda para Clientes:
1-800-843-6154 español / 1-866-324-5553 TTY
| Elder Abuse (not in a Nursing Home) |
Elder Abuse 24-Hour Hotline 1-866-800-1409 (Voice) 1-888-206-1327 (TTY) |
|---|
| Abuse/Neglect of a Person with a Mental Illness or Developmental Disability in a Domestic Setting |
Adult Protective Services at 1-866-800-1409 |
|---|
| Human Rights Violation | Guardianship and Advocacy Commission 1-866-274-8023 (Voice) (708) 338-7500 (outside Illinois) |
|---|
https://www.dhs.state.il.us/page.aspx?item=32675
Understanding Violence Against People with Disabilities
Disability affects more than 1 in 4 women and 1 in 5 men in the United States and has been associated with a greater risk of experiencing violence compared to people without a disability. In the National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS), the term “disability” includes activity limitations an adult may have due to physical, mental, or emotional problems and health problems that require the use of special equipment such as a cane, wheelchair, special bed, or special telephone. Findings from NISVS show that women and men with a disability are at increased risk for experiencing sexual violence (SV) and intimate partner violence (IPV).
Scale and Scope of the Problem
People with disabilities are particularly vulnerable to SV and IPV. The information below is based on NISVS data that captured experiences occurring in the past 12 months before taking the survey. These figures likely underestimate the true burden of SV and IPV victimization and exclude adults living in institutions such as prisons, group homes, and nursing homes.
Sexual Violence
Women with a disability are at greater risk of experiencing rape than women without a disability. An estimated 2 in 5 (39%) female victims of rape had a disability at the time of the rape.
Men with a disability are at greater risk for experiencing SV other than rape (e.g., being made to penetrate, sexual coercion, unwanted sexual contact, and noncontact unwanted sexual experiences) than men without a disability. Nearly 1 in 4 (24%) male victims who experienced SV other than rape had a disability at the time of the victimization.
For both women and men, having a disability was associated with an increased risk of sexual coercion (pressured sex without physical force) and noncontact unwanted sexual experiences (e.g., harassment in a public place, made to participate in or view sexually explicit material).
Intimate Partner Violence:
Women with a disability are more likely than women without a disability to report experiencing rape, SV other than rape, physical violence, stalking, psychological aggression, and control of reproductive or sexual health by an intimate partner. Men with a disability are more likely than men without a disability to report experiencing stalking and psychological aggression by an intimate partner.
Preventing Violence Against People with Disabilities
By understanding that disabled persons are at greater risk of experiencing SV and IPV victimization than persons without a disability, we can take action in our communities to stop the violence before it starts. The strategies and approaches in the SV pdf icon[2.85 MB, 48 Pages, 508] and IPV pdf icon[4.52 MB, 64 Pages, 508] technical packages may help reduce violence among those with a disability.
- Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network’s (RAINN) National Sexual Assault Hotlineexternal icon
- Call 800.656.HOPE (4673) to be connected with a trained staff member from a sexual assault service provider in your area.
- Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network’s (RAINN) National Sexual Assault Online Hotlineexternal icon
- Visit online.rainn.orgexternal icon to chat one-on-one with a trained RAINN support specialist, any time 24/7.
- National Sexual Violence Resource Centerexternal icon
- Violence Against Womenexternal icon
- Call the OWH HELPLINE: 1-800-994-9662
References
9. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021, June 2). Preventing elder abuse. https://www.cdc.gov/ violenceprevention/elderabuse/fa
stfact.html
10. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021, June 2). Preventing elder abuse. https://www.cdc.gov/ violenceprevention/elderabuse/fastfact.html
11. Wisconsin Department of Health Services. (2018, November 13). Adult protective services: Definitions. https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/aps/definitions.htm#Abuse
12. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021, June 2). Preventing elder abuse. https://www.cdc.gov/ violenceprevention/elderabuse/fastfact.html
13. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021, June 2). Preventing elder abuse. https://www.cdc.gov/ violenceprevention/elderabuse/fastfact.htm
14. Get the Facts on Elder Abuse: https://www.ncoa.org/article/get-the-facts-on-elder-abuse
15.5 “APS_header_3.jpg” by unknown author for Washington State Department of Social and Health Services is used under Fair Use.
