By Marie-Therese Connolly in the Washington Post:

In recent years, the nation’s energy and resources have been disproportionately focused on helping people live longer, not better. What we’re now seeing is a generation of frail elderly people who are increasingly alone and more vulnerable than ever to victimization and abuse. Connolly, former coordinator of the Elder Justice and Nursing Home Initiative for the Department of Justice, says the number of abuse cases could reach 5 million per year, with 84 percent unreported.

The problem is magnified by understaffing in nursing homes and sparse federal oversight. Connolly is baffled by the nation’s failure to attend to this issue, particularly considering the impending “tsunami of 77 million aging baby boomers,” and wonders: “Why has there been no public outrage?”

Perhaps the twin culprits of ageism and denial are to blame. Perhaps the constellation of phenomena that make up elder abuse — elders beaten by crack-addled nephews, going unfed in assisted-living facilities, impoverished by sending checks to Canada for mythical sweepstakes winnings — are so disparate that the problem lacks a coherent public identity. Perhaps, although millions of Americans are grappling with the challenge of protecting themselves, their parents and others, elder abuse remains relegated to a family predicament rather than a national one.

Which brings us to this question: How do we as individuals and as a nation measure the value of life in old age? And why have we not done more to protect and defend our most vulnerable elders?

The mythology and customs of aging are ancient and varied. At one end of the spectrum is the wise elder, cared for and revered by the community. At the other is the frail elder, consuming precious food, no longer able to contribute to the tribe’s needs, shunted off on an ice floe. We take solace in believing that we are not a nation that abandons our elders. But we have overestimated our civility. Because in the end, we subject many of our old people to a plight as bad as, if not worse than, the ice floe.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 29th, 2008 at 5:34 am and is filed under abuse, commentary, elderly, law, nursing homes, violence. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.  Email This Post