The Growing Epidemic of Elderly Abuse

07/17/24 • 12 min

The number of senior citizens is growing rapidly; individuals aged 65 and older increased from 39.6 million in 2009 to 54.1 million in 2019 (a 36% increase) and is projected to reach 94.7 million by 2060. However, over the last few years, the usual respect and care of our aging population is decaying into a growing incidence of neglect and abuse.

Prior to COVID-19, one in 10 elderly adults in the U.S. experienced elder abuse. A major review in 2017 of 52 studies from 28 nations reported that 15.7% of people over 60 were subjected to some form of abuse. In 2020, this number doubled to one in five—a nearly 84% increase. A study by the Administration for Aging stated that hundreds of thousands of seniors were abused, neglected and exploited by family and others.

The following is an excerpt from a related Time Magazine article:

"What is even more disturbing is that in 90% of cases, the abuser is a member of the family, based on findings in the study. In fact, two-thirds of the abusers were adult children or spouses. We, of course, find this to be a shocking statistic; since the dawn of recorded history the elderly have been given great respect and were cared for by both the family and the community as a whole."

The following is an excerpt from a related Time Magazine article:

Previous Episode

Is the Healthcare Delivery System Prepared for the Next Terror Attack?

There has been a marked increase in mass casualty events in our society. Targets have included schools, malls, houses of worship, and yes, hospitals. Our staffing crisis unfortunately has negatively affected even our most robust trauma system and emergency rooms; there has also been the closure of many hospitals in rural areas, which has created healthcare deserts. The inability of many towns and small cities to care for “terror event” patients’ issues, of course, will affect how we deliver trauma care.

As such, it’s critical that anesthesia providers in small hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers receive training in Advanced Trauma Life Support to augment the local response. Additionally, communities need to develop a response plan that includes all of the local medical resources, such as ambulatory centers and urgent care facilities, in the event of an attack.

Finally, we should advocate for the public at large to participate in the American Red Cross’s STOP THE BLEED program to increase the pool of first responders who are able to treat severe bleeding. We should stockpile bandages and tourniquets in all potential target areas. Working together, we may be more able to respond to these horrific events in a more effective way, and ultimately save more lives.

Next Episode

The L.A. Wildfires Bring Massive Health Concern

The Los Angeles wildfires have destroyed thousands of homes and stores, and left entire communities in ash and rubble. And while lives have already been lost, experts are now discussing the long-term health impact for those who lived or worked in the area.

"The general practitioners, the anesthesiologists, the entire medical community needs to be educated in occupational medicine and the lessons that we've learned in occupational medicine in dealing with massive exposure," said Peter J. Papadakos, MD, a professor of anesthesiology and perioperative medicine, and the director of critical care medicine at the University of Rochester Medical Center, in New York.

"I think that when I look at this that it’s one of the largest environmental and health catastrophes that has befallen our country─if not the world─in terms of the amount of people that may have been contaminated, and those who may become contaminated once they go back to where their homes were."