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Elder Abuse Information

Media Campaign Against Elder Abuse in California

SACRAMENTO, CA — May 19, 2003 — The California Attorney General’s Office recently launched a statewide program, “Face It—It’s a Crime,” to educate people about the problem of elder abuse (Press Release, April 28, 2003). The three–year media campaign will focus on how to recognize and report cases of elder neglect, financial scams, emotional abuse, and physical abuse. It features TV advertisements, community outreach activities, and print materials, including bus signs, transit station posters and billboards.

One out of every 20 California seniors is a victim of elder abuse, according to the Attorney General’s Office. However, only one out of five of these abuse cases are reported. In a recent survey, 59 percent of the respondents believed that elder abuse was common, but only 11 percent thought that the signs of elder abuse were easy to recognize.

New Booklet Discusses Reporting Elder Abuse

As a first step in the education process, the California Department of Justice and the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) have produced a free booklet, A Citizen’s Guide to Preventing and Reporting Elder Abuse, which provides information on reporting elder abuse and detecting the most common warning signs of elder abuse in the community or in a nursing home. In addition, the California Attorney General program now provides a toll–free hotline (1–888–436–3600) which connects the caller to his or her local Adult Protective Service agency or nursing home ombudsman.

For more details and suggestions about reporting elder abuse and complaints in nursing homes, see Reporting Elder Abuse and Neglect. Also see Avoiding Elder Abuse for tips about getting quality care for your elderly loved one in a nursing home or residential care facility.

At Brayton Purcell, we are concerned about the problems of the elderly. If you have questions about the legal rights of your elderly family member, please feel free to contact us through this web site or at our offices. We are experienced in all facets of elder abuse law, including nursing home abuse and inadequate pain management.

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