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Elder abuse

BMJ 2006; 332 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/sbmj.0604164 (Published 01 April 2006) Cite this as: BMJ 2006;332:0604164
  1. Manuela Moraru, final year medical student1
  1. 1University of Seville, Seville, Spain

As many as 5% of older UK adults have been verbally abused and 2% had been physically or financially abused, a 1992 study found. Manuela Moraru explains what elder abuse is and what has been done to tackle the problem

Older people are a big headache and a waste of scarce resources: the biggest favour you could do to me as an older people's organisation is to get them out of my hospital,” stated a Kenyan healthcare professional to the World Health Organization and the International Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse (INPEA).1

During the past 50 years, the problem of family violence has been considered in specific age groups. The first to be recognised were child and wife abuse, and it was only in 1975 that abuse of the elderly was acknowledged.1 It was another 15 years before research gained political acceptance, and still more needs to be done before this problem is properly controlled.

What is elder abuse?

The definition of elder abuse, as adopted by INPEA and developed by Action on Elder Abuse in the United Kingdom, states: “Elder abuse is a single or repeated act, or lack of appropriate action, occurring within any relationship where there is an expectation of trust which causes harm or distress to an older person.”

Box 1 shows the types of elder abuse recognised by WHO.

Box 1: Types of elder abuse

  • Physical abuse: infliction of pain or injury, physical coercion, or physical or chemical restraint

  • Psychological or emotional abuse: infliction of mental anguish

  • Financial or material abuse: illegal or improper exploitation or use of funds or resources

  • Sexual abuse: non-consensual contact of any kind with an older person

  • Neglect: refusal or failure to fulfil a caretaking obligation, including or excluding a conscious and intentional attempt to inflict physical or emotional distress on the older person

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