Atapattu 1

Ashley Atapattu
Professor Kaz
English 114B
19 March 2015
Elder Abuse
During the start of the twentieth century, there has been a dramatic change in human life
expectancy. As time went by, more and more people are living longer and longer compared to the
1800s where people only lived until there thirties or forties. There has also been an increase in
the aging population all over the world. Many of the older generation, who are sixty-five years
old or older, are being put into nursing homes to receive better care because of the diseases they
have and their families cannot provide the proper care for them. While some believe they are
helping their elderly family members, it may do more harm than good in certain cases because
no one knows what happens behind closed doors. There have been many cases of elderly abuse
but most of the time the abuse is never reported. Abuse in the elderly community is a growing
social issue where the elderly who are in nursing homes are being neglected, psychologically
abused, and physically abused.
Each year, the growth of the older generation is growing more and more. With each elder
between the ages of sixty-five or more, the chances of being abused increases as well due to their
age, disease, and significance. Elderly abuse has been around for a long time, it is just that no
one likes to bring up the issue and in a social services survey in 1988 found 5% of elderly
clients were being abused. (Homer and Gilleard) There are many different forms of elderly

Atapattu 2
abuse in which everyone can recognize such as physical abuse, psychological abuse, neglect,
abandonment, and financial exploitation. When placed in a nursing home, there are three types of
elderly abuse that occur constantly and first type of abuse that the elderly experience often is
neglect. The word neglect means to pay no attention or too little attention to; disregard or slight.
Neglecting a resident in a nursing home can be done in many different ways. Caretakers at
nursing homes can neglect their patients by forgetting the elderly and to not meet their basic
needs such as lack of hygiene care, the lack of attention paid to feeding schedules and/or
medication, etc. (Martins, Neto, Andrade, and Albuquerque). In some nursing homes, the
caretakers already know which patient is the one who has to be repeatedly being taken care of.
Some caretakers will tend to neglect that specific patient because of the amount attention that
patient needs. Other times caretakers are lazy and just wanted to be paid or the caretaker just
simply did not have enough time to get to all the patients. A man by the name of Evan Press and
his family were victims of elderly abuse. Evan Presss father, Doctor Herman Press, was a
resident at a nursing home. According to the video provided by Coluccio, Presss father had
stayed in the nursing home for three months before he passed away. What caused his death was
the bedsore that he had on the lower part of his body. One of the caretaker aides who discovered
Herman Press explained that he had never seen a resident severely dehydrated and malnourished.
Herman Press had been neglected for so long that his body was unable to hold out any longer,
which led to his unfortunate death. Another account where an elder was neglected was found
during the process of conducting primary research. Having conducted an interview with a
relatives daughter, the interview revealed that caretakers in nursing homes in any country can
neglect their patients and lie to the victims family as to how their loved one became even more
ill. After interviewing a relatives daughter, the primary research concluded with removing the

Atapattu 3
victims mother from the nursing home. In a study, results showed that 23.5% of these seniors
have suffered some kind of abuse and neglect was on the list as a form of abuse. (Martins, Neto,
Andrade, and Albuquerque) Like Herman Press and my aunt, they were two of the many
innocent victims who were neglected mistreated.
In order to not have the same occurrences of neglect happen again to any other residents
in nursing homes, the caretakers should take turns alternating shifts throughout the day.
Caretakers can do this method by checking in on five or eight patients at a certain time. Then two
to three hours later the second caretaker follows behind the first caretaker and checks on the
same patients again. What the second caretaker is doing is double checking and making sure that
the first caretaker did not forget to do anything. Another method that can be done to make sure
that no patient is severely neglected is to set up cameras in the halls and in the rooms to monitor
the activity that goes on in the nursing home. If the camera systems are too expensive, the
nursing home can create some kind of check-in system to make sure that they did not forget to
feed, to clean, or to give medicine to any of the patients.
Abuse is a very serious issue that needs to be addressed and it can happen to anyone,
young or old. Being abused can take a toll on someones emotions, which is the second type of
abuse that the elderly experience in a nursing home and that is psychological abuse. The term
psychological abuse or emotional abuse is the practice of mental anguish and suffering.
(Martins, Neto, Andrade, and Albuquerque) Psychological abuse is a type of verbal abuse and is
done in many different ways to the elderly. Verbal abuse is done many times to take control of
the situation the caretakers are in. The caretakers use verbal abuse to get control over the patient
in order to move them from one place to another, to clean, to clothe, and to feed them. In a study
in 1990, Homer and Gilleard studied respite care patients and caregiversand found that 45

Atapattu 4
percent of caregivers admitted to either verbal (41 percent) or physical (14 percent) abuse,
which are very high numbers and should never be that high. (Acierno) The elderly may be a little
stubborn or uncooperative at times but that is because they are in pain or do not know how to
communicate properly to get their thoughts across due to their disorder or disease. There are
many cases where caretakers use this method as an easy way out in order to get the job done
quicker. However, although the method of verbal abuse works, the abuse can cause psychological
damage to the patient. Whenever a caretaker is using verbal abuse to talk to a patient, the
emotions are awfully persuasive and can be manipulated to sway people against their conscious
judgment. (Gandio, 71) By using psychological abuse, it cases the elderly to live in fear
everyday, which is a method that should not be used and not what you want to do to the elderly
to get them to cooperate.
Verbal abuse is not the only way to get the elderly to listen and cooperate with caretakers.
There are many other solutions that can be used and done to have a better communication
between the caretaker and the patient. A good solution for caretakers to use instead of using
psychological abuse is to have better communication skills with their patients. When talking to
the elderly, people need to articulate better and I mean take your time and try to articulate each
syllable, each word and sentence. This helps you be more precise and helps control you rate of
speech. Both have their drawbacks and of course all of this is relative to your cultural and
regional backgrounds. (Gandio, 42) By talking slower, it helps the elderly patients to know what
you are trying to do to help them and what you are saying to them because some may have
trouble hearing. Psychological abuse or verbal abuse is caused by poor communication skills or
relationships with the patient and with better communication skills, there will be less elderly
patients living in fear.

Atapattu 5
Pain is what causes some to feel embarrassed or ashamed to admit or to ask for help
when someone is inflicting it on them. Being abused in a sense of getting hurt and can be seen
physically is the third type of abuse that the elderly living in nursing homes are exposed to. The
term physical abuse is defined as the practice of injury or physical coercion and causes the elder
physical injury or psychological damage, which is a scary thing to even imagine being done to a
child let alone an elderly patient who is defenseless. Physical abuse is a very serious matter
because who would ever think to hurt an innocent elder who just needs love and care in their last
remaining year left. Abuse that can be seen physically on the body of an elderly patient is
extreme and unacceptable type of maltreatment, but it is the most commonand may lead to
unimaginable consequences. (Martins, Neto, Andrade, and Albuquerque) A seventy-seven year
old man by the name of Frank Mercado was a patient at a nursing home who was suffering from
dementia. His caretaker has worked in a nursing home for fourteen years and yet she had never
learned or tried to use a different method to get her patient, Frank Mercado, to listen or cooperate
with her. The form of abuse she resorted to was both psychological and physical abuse.
According to Coluccios article, a fight broke out between the caretaker and Frank Mercado,
which led to Frank Mercados death. When the fight broke out, the caretaker had punched Frank
Mercado, which caused him to slip and fall on a metal sticking out from a broken table. Any
form of physical abuse should never be inflicted on the elderly patients in order to get them to
get them to do what you want them to do.
In every problem like physical abuse or any other form of abuse, there is a solution or
another method that can be done in order to not get anyone hurt in the process. For physical
abuse, the nursing home company who hired that specific caretaker should reevaluate them. Then
the nursing home company should put them in an elder abuse education program for six months

Atapattu 6
to a year. However, if the patients wounds are so severe that they pass away in the hospital, the
caretaker should be treated as a criminal and have the caretaker prosecuted in the court of law for
murder. Abuse in the elderly community is a very serious issue in todays society and should be
treated as a criminal act rather than a social problem. Abuse is, after all, a crime rather than a
diagnosis. (Homer and Gilleard) Home and Gilleard are correct when they say abuse is a crime
rather than a diagnosis and we need to protect the elderly from these cruel forms of abuse that
have been inflicted upon by the people who were suppose to care for them.
In the elderly community, abuse is a growing social issue where the elderly are being
neglected, psychologically abused, and physically abused. Every year the human life expectancy
rate is increasing and people of all ages are living longer. In todays society, people are living
longer compared to their ancestors. With people living longer, there is dramatic increase of the
older generation all over the world. The elderly who are sixty-five years old or older are being
put into nursing homes to receive better care because their families are unable to care for them
around the clock. However, when the elderly are placed in nursing homes, they are exposed to
the top three forms of abuse. The elderly are first neglected because the caretakers did not have
enough time to help everyone or did not want to help because a particular patient is very needy.
The second type of abuse that the elderly who live in nursing homes are exposed to is
psychological abuse or verbal abuse. The caretakers use this form of abuse in order to get the
elderly patient to listen to them so that they can carry on with the rest of their work. The third
and most harmful form of abuse is physical abuse. Caretakers who do use this method take
verbal abuse a step more and physically force elderly patients to listen to them. All in all these
forms of abuse should never be used upon the elders. The elderly were once young and had to
raise a family. As their children we must help and take care of them, as they get older. Parents

Atapattu 7
have done so much for their children and they are the reason why their children are here today.
People should help, care, and protect their elderly family members because after all they got
them to where they are today.

Atapattu 8
Work Cited
1. Atapattu, Ashley. Interview: Elder Abuse. 6 March 2015.
2. Acierno R., Elder Mistreatment: Epidemiological Assessment Methodology. In:
National Research Council (US) Panel to Review Risk and Revalence of Elder
Abuse and Neglect; Bonnie RJ, Wallace RB, editors. Elder Mistreatment: Abuse,
Neglect, and Exploitation in an Aging America. Washington (DC): National
Academies Press (US); 2003. 10. Web. 25 February 2015.
3. Coluccio, Kevin. "Family of Elderly Man Who Died of Neglect Speaks out about Forced
Arbitration." The Elder Abuse Watchdog. Kevin Coluccio, 21 Nov. 2014. Web. 6
Feb. 2015.
4. Coluccio, Kevin."Nursing Home Aide Punches Elderly Dementia Patient, Leading to His
Death." The Elder Abuse Watchdog. Kevin Coluccio, 20 Jan. 2015. Web. 20 Feb.
2015.
5. Gandio, Jason Del. Rhetoric for Radicals: A Handbook for 21st Century Activists.
Gabriola Island, BC: New Society, 2008. Print.
6. Martins, Rosa, Maria Joaao Neto, Ana Andrade, and Carlos Albuquerque. Abuse and
Maltreatment in the Elderly. Atencion Primaria/ Sociedad Espanaola De Medicina
De Familia Y Comunitaria, 46 Suppl 5 (2014): 206-209. Web. 25 February 2015.
7. Hommer, Ann C, and C Gilleard. Abuse of Elderly People by Their Carers. BMJ
British Medical Journal, 301.6765 (1990): 1359-1362. Web. 25 February 2015.

Annotated Bibliography
1. Martins, Rosa, Maria Joaao Neto, Ana Andrade, and Carlos Albuquerque. Abuse and

Atapattu 9
Maltreatment in the Elderly. Atencion Primaria/ Sociedad Espanaola De Medicina
De Familia Y Comunitaria, 46 Suppl 5 (2014): 206-209. Web. 25 February 2015.
In the article, Abuse and Maltreatment in the Elderly, a group of scientist did a
study to find out how high the mistreatment of the elderly really is. They
performed their experiments objective by the form of abuse the elderly was
experiencing. Once they had completed their experiment and collected their data,
the percentage of elderly abuse was surprisingly high. The experiment proved that
elderly abuse can happen every day at any time and at any place. All in all,
someone must intervene because elderly abuse happens everywhere around the
world.
2. Acierno R., Elder Mistreatment: Epidemiological Assessment Methodology.
In: National Research Council (US) Panel to Review Risk and Revalence of Elder
Abuse and Neglect; Bonnie RJ, Wallace RB, editors. Elder Mistreatment: Abuse,
Neglect, and Exploitation in an Aging America. Washington (DC): National
Academies Press (US); 2003. 10. Web. 25 February 2015.
In this article, Elder Mistreatment: Epidemiological Assessment, there are many
ways to check agency to see if it has any history of elder abuse. Then they can
conduct tests to see if their records are correct. Unfortunately, some assessments are
not recorded for when an elder is abused. When being interviewed for the assessment,
some of the elderly could have been abused in every way possible but some would
not tell the truth because they do not want to be a nuisance, they feel embarrassed, or
they do not want to be looked at as the victim. The interviews that were conducted

Atapattu 10
give a good explanation as to why the elderly do not come forward and tell authorities
that they are being abused by someone. There are other assessments on what methods
and measures are being to address the issue.
3. Hommer, Ann C, and C Gilleard. Abuse of Elderly People by Their Carers. BMJ
British Medical Journal, 301.6765 (1990): 1359-1362. Web. 25 February 2015.
In this article, Abuse of Elderly People by Their Carers, you find out how many
elderly people get abused and what their caretakers characteristics are like toward
their patients. A test was conducted over a six month period where the researchers
interviewed caretakers to see if they used any form of abuse on their patients. The
article discusses what the disease the elderly had and the methods used by the care
takers to get them to listen.
4. Gandio, Jason Del. Rhetoric for Radicals: A Handbook for 21st Century Activists.
Gabriola Island, BC: New Society, 2008. Print.
Gandios book tells you how to become an activist. He gives you a step by step
process on what to do it, when to do it, and where to go do it. In the second part of
the book, he understands how some people think and feel about public speaking.
Then he shows you to prepare and how to communicate to your audience. The
process he uses to prepare the first time activist may be bit confusing in the
beginning. However, once you completely read part two of Gandios book you
understand what you have to in order to get your message across.
5. Coluccio, Kevin. "Family of Elderly Man Who Died of Neglect Speaks out about Forced
Arbitration." The Elder Abuse Watchdog. Kevin Coluccio, 21 Nov. 2014. Web. 6
Feb. 2015.
Evan Presss father was placed in a nursing home to receive proper care. About
three months later he passed from a bedsore. He was also forced to sign a
arbitration just in case something happened to him.

Atapattu 11
6. Coluccio, Kevin."Nursing Home Aide Punches Elderly Dementia Patient, Leading to His
Death." The Elder Abuse Watchdog. Kevin Coluccio, 20 Jan. 2015. Web. 20 Feb.
2015.
A man named Frank Mercado died tragically due to dangerous fall. A nasty fight
broke out between Frank Mercado and his caretaker where she punched him and
he landed on a metal bar from a broken table. She was recently being prosecuted
for her charges.
7. Atapattu, Ashley. Interview: Elder Abuse. 6 March 2015.
I conducted a series of two interviews about my subculture topic, which is abuse
in the elderly community. I first interviewed my aunts daughter who is from Sri
Lanka but works in Dubai. She placed her mother in a nursing home in Sri Lanka
because she works in a different country. She put her mother in a nursing home
for people who have dementia. I asked her two questions which are how to you
feel about elderly abuse and why you took your mother out of the nursing home.
For my second interview, I interviewed my aunt, my mothers sister, who lives in
Australia. I asked her why didnt she put my grandma in a nursing home to get
more care and what do you think of nursing homes.