Abuse In Nursing Home

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Behind closed doors For many families, nursing homes are often the choice to turn to when deciding to put their old loved one up for care. Why? The reason is simple. Because families know and trust that their elderly loved one will be provided with adequate care during their stay at a nursing home. We expect the caregivers to give the utmost care for them, address their needs, support them, love them and provide them maximal safety while at a residence. However, the opposite is occurring. Harm is happening to the elderly right from the hands of the people who are supposed to do otherwise. Elder abuse from caregivers still transpires to this day, and it is the elderly who are forced to live with the consequences. We don’t often hear about …show more content…
Psychological abuse can take the form of intimidation, verbal assault, threat of abuse, harassment, and intimidation (Dong 1214). In a research, fifty-eight elderly in nursing homes reported the most frequent types of psychological abuse they have been submitted to. The report revealed psychological abuse such as lack of attention, lack of affection, derogatory naming and demeaning commentary, threats of violence, loud talking and confinement, respectively (Peretti and Majecen 258). These psychological abuses can greatly affect the elderly’s well-being. As an example, the lack of attention towards the elderly can cause them to feel isolated from others (Peretti and Majecen 258). There are some signs displayed by the elderly that can indicate they are being psychologically abused. Signs of psychological abuse we may see in the elderly are conduct disorders like antisocial or destructive behaviour, or even sucking and biting behaviours (Peretti and Majecen 256). Psychological abuse on the elderly can lead to serious disorders like “hysteria, phobia, compulsion and/or hypochondria; an elderly may feel like there is a problem with their health, but they are completely fine (Peretti and Majecen 256)”. Psychological abuse is to the same extent as severe as physiological abuse. We must protect the elderly in …show more content…
We must protect such a vulnerable population from maltreatment by installing prevention measures in nursing homes. One of the reasons why elder abuse is underreported by health professionals is because “… of subtlety of signs, victim denial, and lack of knowledge about reporting procedures (Dong 1234)”. This is surprising because as health care providers, they should have been promptly taught the procedures to report abuse when suspected or witnessed. As a result, the elderly are trapped with the abuse of the caregivers. Early detection plays a major role in preventing further abuse in the elderly. Elderly reports of abuse, family reports of suspected abuse towards their loved one in a nursing home and vulnerability risks like an elderly with dementia are key points for early detection of abuse (Dong 1234). Likewise, if a caregiver suspects elder abuse from a co-worker, the caregiver should obtain “detailed histories; especially psychosocial and cultural aspects (Dong 1234)”. Also, the signs of physical and psychological abuse listed in the earlier paragraphs may be cues for elder abuse from caregivers, which needs to be reported and addressed immediately. If these procedures are thoroughly followed, elder abuse can be reduced. Elder abuse from caregivers cannot be completely stopped, but

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