What types of abuse are common in nursing homes?

On Behalf of | Jan 22, 2020 | Nursing Home Abuse & Neglect |

Abuse can happen to anyone and anywhere, especially at a nursing home. Mostly, it happens to the older people who cannot cook, bathe or dress. They become soft targets for abuse because caregivers negatively view them as burdens.

What hurts most is that it is not easy to read signs of abuse on the elderly and even thou some people do; to them, it is not worth reporting. However, abuse is wrong, and according to the National Institute on Aging, it can only end if you report it. Now, what are the types of abuse older people go through?

  • Emotional abuse, which can be abusing, threatening or yelling at the older person. Also, ignoring them and keeping them from meeting family and friends amounts to abuse.
  • Abandonment, which is leaving an older person alone without plans on their care.
  • Physical abuse that aims at causing bodily harm. It can be either by pushing, hitting or slapping the older person.
  • Sexual abuse is forcing an older person to watch or engage in sexual acts.
  • Neglect is when a caregiver does not pay attention to an older person leaving them without basic needs.

While you may not see the effects of abuse, they are long term, unlike physical wounds that heal. It leaves the older people feeling that they are at fault, causing depression.

There are many signs of abuse, and most of them are noticeable. For example, some may show signs of stress, unnecessary agitation, weight loss or lack of sleep. These signs should tell you the older person is going through some abuse.