Introduction
Abuse can be of any form and can happen to anyone regardless of age, race, sex, or cultural background. Research has revealed that every year thousands of elder people over the age of 60 face elder abuse, such as being neglected by a family member or exploited financially. Elder abuse can occur anywhere, whether in the aging individual’s home, a family member’s home, an assisted living facility, or a nursing home. Family members, complete strangers, medical professionals, caretakers, or friends may mistreat older people. The elder can face several cases of abuse, such as physical abuse, when an individual causes bodily damage by hitting or locking the elder in the room, going against his will. Emotional abuse is when the person taking care of the elder says hurtful words, threatens, shouts at them, or repeatedly turns a blind eye to the elder. Also, it can occur when the elder is blocked from seeing a close friend and family member. Research done shows there are many cases of elder abuse in Charlotte county. The essay will focus on elder abuse in Charlotte County and the factors leading to the abuse.
Proposed intervention
The intervention was a one-time four-hour event held at the different caregiver centers in Charlotte County. Abuse of the elder in Charlotte County by their caregivers has increased and has received attention over the past years. The proposed intervention should involve screening for elder abuse. The screening will help identify whether the symptoms result from abuse or other illnesses. Some signs that will indicate abuse s depression, fracture, contusion, weight loss, or laceration. In case of such signs, the patient should be examined in a private, far away from the caregiver and any other staff. The people examining the patient should provide a safe place for disclosure because talking about abuse might be difficult, dangerous, or shameful for some patients. At the point where the patient has to interact with the alleged abuser, I would recommend an emphatic nonjudgmental approach. The intervention is significant in reducing the mortality rate that is a result of elder abuse. Research of global research activity on elder abuse done by Waleed M. Sweileh shows that elder abuse will continue to intensify. He conducted the research by collecting information in different settings in areas of Asia, Africa, and the middle east. The study concludes that the best intervention to curb elder abuse is the government. According to research findings, the government must pass policies that will act as preventive measures against elder abuse (Sweileh, 2021).
In the research on elder abuse in city areas immigration colony of Delhi, the aim was to find out the factors and prevalence of elder abuse in the area. The study was carried out among the aged people 60 years and above. The study revealed some of the factors associated with elder abuse. Most of the abused elders did not participate in any social activities and had no regular touch with family or friends. The likelihood of maltreatment was higher when others oversaw participants’ finances and when older participants relied on others for their daily needs. The results of this study indicate that India has a high rate of elder abuse. The victims of abuse are hesitant to report the assault and lack social support. Therefore, regulations and policies that actively screen and protect the elderly population are needed (Kumar & Patra, 2019).
In research done by Ana Gil on elder abuse and abandonment in nursing homes, its main objective was to explore the different conflicts inside nursing home organizations. The finding resulted in finding the factors that affect the quality of caregivers’ work. One factor is the lack of enough personnel in a different organization, low wages, lot of pressure on working hours. Other includes a poor working atmosphere, a lack of response, work condemnation, and inadequate technical supervision. When examining elder abuse and neglect, these aspects are significant, and policymakers and academics should pay close attention to this (Gil & Capelas, 2021).
Another study reviewed the literature on survey tools that assess workers-to-resident exploitation in housing care settings. According to the study, an elderly person’s susceptibility to abuse is influenced by various risk factors, such as old age, reasoning impairment or dementia, mental disorder, physical handicap, dependence on assistance and care, and social isolation. The survey’s thorough analysis of the literature reveals numerous survey tools available for measuring workers-to-resident mistreatment in housing care settings, with the majority of studies being carried out in high-income nations. The device created by Dr. Castle is a promising method for assessing all forms of resident maltreatment by workers in nursing homes and assisted living amenities. It has been applied in numerous US staff studies (Malmedal et al., 2020).
In another study of elder abuse in Europe, the aim is to investigate characteristics of elder abuse that will be used to evaluate the phenomenon’s trend and give some preventive measures. The study observed a gradual rise in the number of exploitations reported to the judicial authorities; this is a sign that more people are becoming aware of the issue. Healthcare professionals must receive training to recognize and handle suspected abuse instances and provide proper support in high-risk scenarios (Drommi et al., 2021).
Resources required
During my research, I will require a team to help conduct the study. The financial cost I used during the study accumulated to $450. The facility I will use for the study has a high number of elderly people in the area. The facility is found in the central part of Charlotte County and is known as GrandCare Assisted Living. The facility offers cheap services, which is why many people prefer to take their elderly people to the facilities. I choose the facility because it will offer a wide range of people who will provide the information needed. My team will also be required to visit other facilities for efficiency results at the end of the project. Some external stakeholders from the ministry of health will be useful during the project. They will be involved to elaborate on the issue and what are some of the measure government need to take to eradicate the problem. I will use a simple random sample that requires me randomly selects elderly people from a population. Every member will have an equal chance to be selected. The chosen elder will be asked questions orally in a private room for disclosure purposes. The equipment that is needed in the study includes a laptop, notebook, pen, etc. the total cost of all equipment is $300.
Implementation plan
The implementation plan will include all the steps my team needs to accomplish the objective of the study. The first is to define the study’s goal, which is to find factors leading to a high number of elder abuse in Charlotte County. The team needs to brainstorm on the study’s objective to give a more realistic idea of what is needed of us to achieve the objective. Defining the objective and brainstorming on it will take a span of one week so that we will be well prepared. The next step is to conduct research after having a broad idea of the project goal. In order to achieve the goal, we need to conduct the study using methods such as interviews and surveys. Also, we have to include external stakeholders who will help break down the problem. Collaboration using shared tools is essential in ensuring we get feedback from other team members despite their location. Conducting the research will take a span of two to three weeks.
Another step is to map out risks; outlining the likely potential risk is crucial. The risk may include paid time off or loss of personnel, or paying a spy to investigate the issue. At this point, we will conduct a SWOT analysis to identify the weakness and threats that will affect the project. Identifying preventable risks during the stage of the implementation plan allows us to take action to stop risk. Another step is scheduling project milestones; this will help track the project’s progress during execution. We will use the Gantt chart to help visualize project milestones, keeping my team on task. The Gantt chart will help display the implementation timetable and indicate how long we anticipate each task to take. Assigning responsibilities and duties to each member with that, I can check each member’s performance and closely monitor the project’s progress. Allocation of resources is a way to reduce the risk experienced in a project. Ensuring the resources required during the project are available will enable to execution of a perfect result. Resources that are necessary for my project include money, equipment, personnel, and software.
Evaluation method
An evaluation method is a tool for clarifying the procedures required to carry out a thorough study. Before I evaluate the success of my project, it is fundamental that I ascertain that it is being carried out as intended and the project’s goal has been reached. Several evaluation methods help in the accomplishment of the task. The first is process evaluation, which assesses the project’s activities, standards, and the intended people. Process evaluation will aid in answering the questions about the project. Has the project achieved its objective? Are all persons and stakeholders satisfied with the question imposed on them? Are all operations being carried out as intended? Unless, why? Secondly, impact evaluation is used to assess the immediate effects of the project and is aligned with the project’s goal. Impact assessment enables to answer some questions such as; how successfully were the desired short-term modifications implemented? How well did the project succeed in achieving its goals? For instance, the project aims to find the factors leading to increased elder abuse. The impact evaluation will measure the project’s success after it ends up to six months later.
The other method is outcome evaluation, which is anxious about the project’s long-term effects and is used to measure the project’s objective. The method help in answering questions such as has the aim of the entire program been met? What unforeseen changes, if any, have resulted from the program? Summative evaluation is done after the project, which helps in a decision such as is it feasible to apply the project in other contexts? The above evaluation method will be used in my project because the result will benefit the immediate task and the knowledge gained to improve future projects.
Reflection
I enjoyed the project because it will help educate people on the county’s elder abuse risk. People will be more cautious when taking their elder family members to some care. People will understand the importance of visiting their elder people in the care center. Throughout the project, I have learned lessons that will impact my professional practices in the future. The documented information on every stage has positive and negative experiences, which will help my next project. From the project, we revealed that social isolation and poor quality relationships are the main reason there is an increase in elder abuse. I will advise people on the factors to consider before taking their elderly members to a caregiver center with the knowledge I have gained throughout the project. It is vital to communicate clearly to other members involved in the project; the lesson has helped me to have a good relationship with my colleagues. In the future, I will be able to cope with the pressure of a complex task the boss has entrusted me to perform.
References
Drommi, M., Ponte, A., Ventura, F., & Molinelli, A. (2021). Elder abuse in Europe’s “most elderly” city: an update of the phenomenon based on the cases reported to the Penal Court of Genoa from 2015 to 2019 and literature review. Aging clinical and experimental research, 33(10), 2865-2871. DOI:10.1007/s40520-021-01790-6
Gil, A. P., & Capelas, M. L. (2021). Elder abuse and neglect in nursing homes as a reciprocal process: the view from the perspective of care workers. The Journal of Adult Protection. DOI:10.1108/JAP-06-2021-0021
Kumar, P., & Patra, S. (2019). A study on elder abuse in an urban resettlement colony of Delhi. Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care, 8(2), 621. DOI:10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_323_17
Malmedal, W., Kilvik, A., Steinsheim, G., & Botngård, A. (2020). A literature review of survey instruments used to measure staff‐to‐resident elder abuse in residential care settings. Nursing Open, 7(6), 1650-1660. DOI:10.1002/nop2.573
Sweileh, W. M. (2021). Global research activity on elder abuse: A bibliometric analysis (1950–2017). Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 23(1), 79-87. DOI:10.1007/s10903-020-01034-1
write