Author: Anonymous
ALBANY, NY May 7, 2004 -ยกX The New York State Summit on Elder Abuse will begin May 10 here, marking the first comprehensive effort in the state to help rising numbers of elderly people subjected to physical, psychological, lake greenwood
, and financial mistreatment.
Conservative estimates place the likely number of elder abuse victims in the United States at more than 500,000 a year.
New York does not require central reporting of elder abuse cases, but victims number in the tens of thousands statewide.
Convened by Lifespan of Greater Rochester, the summit will bring together 100 invited participants with expertise or a professional role in reducing elder abuse.
“Elder abuse is literally a crime against a generation and it is getting worse,” said Fran Weisberg, President/CEO of Lifespan, a non-profit organization that serves older adults and their caregivers through a variety of programs.
“The abuse of older adults is under-recognized, under-reported and under-prosecuted.
“We need to bring this subject to the forefront the same way that, 30 years ago, domestic abuse entered our nation’s consciousness ยกX with awareness followed by concrete action to prevent the abuse and prosecute the abusers.”
Along with Lifespan, three state agencies and two private health insurers are sponsoring the summit, which is also funded in part by a federal grant obtained by Sen.
Charles Schumer (D-NY).
The summit will take place at the Crowne Plaza City Center, State and Lodge Streets in Albany. After a welcoming session, lake greenwood
, May 10, participants will divide into groups for work sessions May 11 on intervention models, financial exploitation, public awareness, self-neglect, law enforcement and public health, lake greenwood
, . On May 12 the group will close with the release of elder abuse policy recommendations in each of the six areas.
All sessions are open to the media.
Statistics from the National Center on Elder Abuse are disturbing:
* One in 14 adults over the age of 60 is likely to be abused
* Nine times out of 10, family members are responsible, lake greenwood
, for the abuse
* Financial exploitation is one of the fastest growing forms of elder abuse
* Only one in five cases of elder abuse is ever reported to the authorities
The last statistic may be the saddest of all, because the stories that are reported range,, lake greenwood
, lake greenwood
, from disturbing to horrific.
* A son beats his elderly mother, sending her to the hospital with broken bones.
* Two brothers isolate their aging father and spend his pension checks on their own needs.
* Mary, at age 50, is responsible for the care of her incapacitated 80-year-old mother, yet she provides only one meal a day and fails to give her needed medication.
* Joe gives a contractor a $14,000 down payment to make major home repairs.
He is 90-years-old and is still waiting for the “contractor” to show up.
The downside to a population that, lake greenwood
, is living longer ยกX thanks to modern medicine and health conscious Baby Boomers born between 1946 and 1964 ยกX is the burden the aging population places on younger generations. United Nations population studies project that close to 1 in 20 of those boomers could live to be 100 years old.
Few families prepare for the impact of caring for members who live to very old age, and few states are prepared for the impact that the abuse of those elders could have on social services and law enforcement.
“Elder abuse victims are in an especially difficult situation because they often are dependent on the abuser and have little possibility of moving or otherwise ending the abusive relationship,” Weisberg said.
Summit Is a First of Its Kind
Modeled on the National Summit on Elder Abuse in 2001, the Lifespan-convened summit is the most comprehensive meeting to date in any state ยกX bringing together experts and organizations from across New York for in-depth working sessions, lake greenwood
, on multiple aspects of the elder abuse problem.
Weisberg said the summit should lay the foundation for a permanent New York State Coalition on Elder Abuse.
“No single conference, lake greenwood
, can solve such a difficult and pervasive problem,” Weisberg said. “Our hope is that, by the end of our summit, we will have a blueprint that will be a national model for helping government and social services cope with elder abuse.”
National experts who will speak at the summit include:
Dr. Carmel Dyer, founder and director of the Geriatrics Program at the Harris County Hospital District, lake greenwood
, in Houston, Texas, is a well-known expert in the area of elder abuse.
In 2002, she addressed the U.S. Senate, lake greenwood
, Finance, lake greenwood
, Committee on behalf of mistreated elders. Dr. Dyer is the co-director of the Texas Elder Abuse and Mistreatment, lake greenwood
, Institute (TEAM), a collaboration between the Baylor College of Medicine, the Harris County Hospital District and the Texas Department of, lake greenwood
, Protective, lake greenwood
, and Regulatory Services.
Robert Blancato has had a 25-year career in public service that includes serving as staff director, lake greenwood
, of the House Select Committee on Aging Subcommittee on Human Services from 1977 to 1988, and as the committee’s senior advisor until 1993. He is the national coordinator for the recently launched Elder Justice, lake greenwood
, Coalition, a bi-partisan organization that supports elder justice in the United States.
He also served executive director of the 1995 White House Conference on Aging. Mr. Blancato is currently president of Matz, Blancato & Associates, Inc., a public relations, government affairs and advocacy firm.
Paul Greenwood is a deputy district attorney for the San Diego district attorney’s office, where he has headed the Elder Abuse Prosecution Unit since 1993. He has been involved in the prosecution of more than 200 felony cases of elder and dependent adult abuse and he testified before the U.
S. Senate Special Committee on Aging in June 2001.
Ricker Hamilton is the protective program administrator in Adult Protective Services for the Maine Department of Health and Human Services, where since 1982 he has managed and directed regional adult protective services and public guardianship and conservatorship programs. He is president of the National Adult Protective Services Association and chair of the Maine Elder Death Analysis Review Team.
Sen. Schumer is expected to help open the summit, and Lt. Gov. Mary O. Donohue will address the closing session. Many state legislators will attend to discuss elder abuse policy recommendations as they are being developed.
Sponsors of the three-day event include the New York State Office of Children and Family Services, Bureau of Adult Services;, lake greenwood
, the New York State Office for the Aging; the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services; Excellus BlueCross Blue Shield; and MedAmerica Insurance Company of New York.
About Lifespan
The 2004 New York State Elder Abuse Summit is convened and sponsored by Lifespan of Greater Rochester, Inc. Lifespan has been providing services to older adults and their caregivers for more than 33 years, directly serving about 18,000 older adults last year. Lifespan provides elder abuse services in 10 counties across, lake greenwood
, the Finger Lakes region of New York.
Note to editors: All sessions are open to the media.
For more information, please contact:
Lifespan of Greater Rochester, Inc.
1900 S. Clinton Avenue
Rochester, NY 14618
Tel: 585.244.8400
Fax:, lake greenwood
, 585.244.9114
www.lifespan-roch.org
Source: free-articles
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