What is elder abuse?

Physical Abuse:
the intentional or reckless use of physical harm or physical coercion that may result in bodily injury, physical pain, or impairment. Under the Older Americans Act, ‘‘physical harm’’ means bodily injury, impairment, or disease.
 
Examples include but are not limited to: 

• Hitting, beating, pushing, shaking, slapping, kicking, pinching, and burning
• Unlawful, excessive, or unnecessary use of force like restraints or force-feeding
• Over-medication or under-medication 

Sexual Abuse:
non-consensual sexual contact of any kind with an older adult.
 
Examples include but are not limited to:  

• Unwanted touching, sexual assault or battery, sexual harassment
•  Sexual interaction with elders who lack the capacity to give consent 

Emotional / Psychological Abuse:

the infliction of anguish, pain, or distress through verbal or nonverbal acts. 
 
Examples include but are not limited to:    

• Verbal assaults, insults, threats, intimidation, humiliation, isolation, and harassment

Neglect:

the refusal or failure of a caregiver or fiduciary to fulfill any part of a person's obligations or duties of care to an older person. The Elder Justice Act defines neglect as “the failure of a caregiver or fiduciary to provide the goods or services that are necessary to maintain the health or safety of an elder.
 
Examples include but are not limited to:

• Failing to provide for life necessities such as food, water, clothing, shelter, and medicine 

Financial:

the illegal, unauthorized, or improper use of an older person’s resources for monetary or personal benefit, profit, or gain, or that results in depriving an older person of rightful access to, or use of, benefits, resources, belongings, or assets.
 
Examples include but are not limited to: 

• Misusing or stealing an older person’s money or possessions 
• Coercing or deceiving an older person into signing any document such as a contract or will
• Improper use of conservatorship, guardianship, or power of attorney 

*Fraud and scams are characterized by acts perpetrated by a stranger or someone outside of a trust relationship. Deceit or misrepresentation are used to convince another to relinquish their money, property, or assets.  

Self-Neglect:

an adult’s inability, due to physical or mental impairment or diminished capacity, to perform essential self-care tasks.
 
Examples include but are not limited to: 

• Obtaining adequate food, water, clothing, shelter, personal hygiene, medical and mental health care, and safety precautions, and/or managing one’s finances. 
• Self-neglect excludes a situation in which a mentally competent older person, who understands the consequences of their decisions, makes a conscious and voluntary decision to engage in acts that threaten their health or safety as a matter of personal choice. 

Abandonment:

the desertion of an older person by an individual who has assumed responsibility for providing care for an elder, or by a person with physical custody of an elder.
 
A few state statutes classify abandonment as a separate and unique form of elder abuse. Definitions vary by state. Some state statutes categorize elder abandonment as a type of elder neglect. Abandonment may occur at a hospital, nursing home, or other public place.