Comfort Care Hospice Informs About Elderly Abuse
Reports of elderly abuse in the U-S is on the rise, but officials in one county in South Alabama are working hard to keep residents informed, in hopes of preventing it from happening there.
Irene Butler is 88 years old, and retirement isn’t in her vocabulary.
In fact she’s worked with local representative Mike Jones to get the Elder Abuse Prevention Act passed and signed by Governor Robert Bentley.
“We were very interested in getting it passed because we had people who came to us and testified that they had adult abuse to them in many shapes, forms, and fashions. ” Said Butler.
She came to the Senior Summit in Andalusia to talk to people about an cause she’s on a mission to stop. Butler says elder abuse is a real problem, and it’s the reason she’s at the Seventh Senior Fall Summit hosted by Comfort Care Hospice. There were a number of issues pertaining to the elderly including transitioning from the hospital to a nursing home, and how to take care of your loved ones
Elder abuse has more than a physical connotation. It’s also financial. And leaders here say the predators are usually not strangers. It’s mainly by family members and even neighbors.
Elderly abuse is considered a crime. That’s why district Attorney Walt Merrell says his office is doing whatever it can to inform the community.
“We do a lot to publicize those scams to say hey this is what’s going around the county today, this is a scam and you just need to be aware of it. ” Said Merrell
Walt Merrell also tells us if you have witnessed or are a victim of elder abuse you are asked to call your local DHR Office or Local Law Enforcement. Because according to the National Center on Elder Abuse only 1 in 14 cases of elder abuse is reported to local authorities.
