What Can We Do? Highlighting Elder Abuse and Neglect

June 15, 2016 | NCCD

elderabuseblog

While elder abuse is tragically common, the estimated 500,000-plus incidents of adult maltreatment that occur annually in the United States do not get the attention they need and deserve. Only a fraction of these incidents are reported formally to the adult protective services (APS) agencies responsible for investigating them. Reports of abuse continue to increase, and though more states are requiring social workers to report incidents, the growing senior population requires us to react earlier, faster, and better to elder abuse and neglect.  

NCCD helps APS agencies make research-driven service decisions. Workers who are able to identify adults at high risk of maltreatment or self-neglect may be able to better target efforts and resources toward those most in need of long-term services. A primary task of social workers and their APS agencies is to respond to allegations of maltreatment, including abuse (physical, emotional, and sexual), financial exploitation, neglect by another person, and self-neglect. NCCD helps agencies do this through the implementation of research-based and structured assessments, and much more.  

Continue (or begin!) to learn more about adult protection using the NCCD resources linked below. Quarterly webinars and various publications highlight the issues and solutions.  

For more information on NCCD’s work in adult protection, contact sdmsystems@nccdglobal.org.  

Webinars 

NCCD is pleased to host and moderate the APS Research to Practice webinar series sponsored by the National Adult Protective Services Association (NAPSA) and National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse (NCPEA) Research Committee.  NCCD and the NAPSA/NCPEA Research Committee share the goals of promoting research in the areas of adult and elder mistreatment and supporting APS agencies’ use of research to inform and strengthen practice.  

Click here for quarterly webinars hosted by NCCD. Topics include financial exploitation, self-neglect, safety hazards, warning signs of abuse, and more.
 

Selected APS Publications

Other Resources: