How To Prevent Elderly Abuse

Find a good caregiver. More often than not, people who abuse elders do not have close ties to the elderly person. If you can find a caregiver for your elderly loved one whom you trust and with whom you have a history with, there is less likely of a chance that your loved one will be abused by this person. So find a friend, a good nurse, a respite works or another home caregiver that you fully trust to provide for the seniors in your life.

Make sure the caregiver knows what to expect. Some elderly abuse happens out of frustration. Perhaps the caregiver didn't know what to expect in terms of the condition of your elderly family member. In general, maybe the caregiver feels that his or her responsibilities are just too much. If the caregiver was overwhelmed with the demands of your loved one's specific mental, physical and overall medical needs, he or she may have been pushed to abuse your loved one.

To prevent such elderly abuse, arrange for a meeting between your chosen elder caregiver and your older family member's doctors. Hopefully, this type of communication will bring full understanding to the caregiver about the needs of your elderly family member, thereby preventing elderly abuse. As well, don't lay any more responsibility on the elder caregiver than is absolutely necessary. Take care of paying bills, running errands and other personal tasks for your elder family member by yourself.

Always touch base with your elderly family member. It doesn't have to be you, but someone needs to be checking in on your elderly family member at random times, especially when he or she is under the care of someone else. Talk to friends, family members and even neighbors about creating a ‘check-in' schedule. Perhaps you can check on your loved senior on Tuesday and Thursday, have the neighbors stop by on Monday and Wednesday, and give your sister the responsibility of stopping by your family member's house on the weekend. Don't set any specific times. Just ensure that people are always dropping in unannounced at the home or care facility of your aging loved one.

(If you can't stop by every day, often there are organizations within your own community that will volunteer to do this. The Alzheimer's association is one such organization that happily stops by the homes of elders to ensure that everything is okay. It's a great way to prevent elderly abuse.)

Consider day-time care facilities for the elderly. If you can't be with your elderly family member throughout the day and you aren't comfortable leaving him or her alone with a caregiver, you do have other options. You can enroll your loved one in something similar to ‘adult day-care' in your community. Choose one that is run by professional caregivers, social works and doctors. Going with a reputable daytime care facility is an excellent way to prevent elderly abuse.