Thank you, Mr. Speaker and happy Friday the 13th . As mentioned earlier, this Sunday,
June 15, is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, and I’m going to do my part today to raise the awareness of elder abuse.
Elder abuse is a significant threat to the residents of our communities, as Members well know, and it’s a problem in both small communities and larger centres. For many years elder abuse remained a private matter hidden from view and not talked about. Thankfully, in the last 30 years or so elder abuse has become increasingly more important to our society and is now seen as a public problem needing attention.
The World Health Organization report called Missing Voices stated that “abuse, neglect and financial exploitation of elders are much more common than societies admit.” The same report demonstrates clear links between elder abuse and disempowerment and discrimination of elders.
Elder abuse is defined as any kind of physical, sexual, psychological or economic abuse, as well as neglect. Perhaps surprisingly, male elders are at almost the same risk for abuse as female elders. Family members extort money from their elders or force them to sign over property. Elders are taken advantage of because they are physically frail or have diminished mental capacity. They are an easy target, unfortunately.
It’s probably no surprise to anyone here, Mr.
Speaker, that elder abuse happens in
institutions as well as private homes. Many of us will have seen documentaries profiling the abuse of elders in hospitals, nursing homes and other long-term care facilities. One of the few studies available on elder abuse suggests that 4 to 6 per cent of the elderly have experienced some form of abuse at home.
Our elders should be respected and honoured. They hold the wisdom, the history and the knowledge of our communities and our territory. We cannot ignore elder abuse, and understanding it gives us the power to fight it. What’s needed is for society to recognize that elder abuse and neglect is occurring and to raise our awareness of the problem. We need to inform health and social service practitioners and the general public about elder abuse — ensure that they can identify the signs and know where to find help. We need to use the media to change attitudes and reduce stereotyping of the elderly, and we need to educate our elders as well. All of these actions help to bring the problem of elder abuse out into the open, to acknowledge that it is a problem, and then we can start to eradicate it.
On Sunday find an elder, show them the respect they deserve and let them know you care.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.