KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – June is Elder Abuse Awareness Month, it’s a growing problem with the nation’s second largest age group.
One in six Americans are now 65 or over and the 85 & over crowd is still the fastest growing age group, despite the toll the pandemic took on the elderly.
The abuse can come in the form of physical injuries, financial exploitation, and the most insidious form may be simple neglect.
Statistics show that one in ten seniors have suffered some form of abuse and Don Saldia at the Kalamazoo Area Agency on Aging says less than one case in four is ever reported.
“All the statistics, all the reports with adult protective services, those are all of the cases that we are simply made aware of, those cases that are actually being reported.”
He says that’s why these reminders are important.
“Because it raises that awareness and it recognizes that we as a community care for the whole aging spectrum.”
It’s also important that caregivers and relatives be aware of the warning signs of elder abuse, and that they investigate and report when they appear.
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