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The

 

December 1, 1987

Mad Hatter |

A Douglas College Newslette

 

 

THE ELDERLY NEED MORE PROTECTION

CONFERENCE CONCLUDES

ae B.C. government needs to

do much more to protect the
elderly. That is the consensus
from a two-day conference called
Abuse and Neglect of the Elderly
held at New Westminster’s
Douglas College on November
20th and 21st.

Linda Tod, conference
spokesperson, said that the most
important recommendation to
come out of the conference is the
request for a designated agency
to investigate abuse of the aged.

"We might suspect that an elder
ly woman is gradually being
robbed of all her money and pos-
sessions, or that a frail man is
locked away in his own home, or
even being beaten. But there is
nobody in B.C. who has the
authority to step in, investigate
and offer help when it is needed,"
said Tod, who works with the
elderly in Langley. "The numbers
of elderly people are growing.
We have to face this problem
now."

The crux of the problem, Tod
said, is that the elderly may be
too ill or otherwise disabled to
scck help for themselves.

At the same time, the aged are
often too ashamed to tell anyone
that a family member is mistreat-
ing them. Some fear they will be
put into a nursing home.

Dr. Robert Gordon, Assistant
Professor of Criminology at
Simon Fraser University warned
against heavy-handed legislation.
But he stressed the need to
change the legal system to better

protect the disabled and the elder-
ly.

"New adult guardianship law is
essential. What we have in place
at present is diabolical," Gordon
said.

The conference was organized
by the Social Planning and
Research Council (SPARC) elder
abuse task force and Douglas Col-

lege.

Over 100 people attended the
conference including social
workers, nurses and other health
practitioners, volunteers who
work with the aged, and justice
system professionals.

Following two days of
speeches, a panel discussion, and
small group sessions, conference
participants drafted the following
recommendations to the B.C. Min-
istry of Health:

 

1. a) To designate an agency to
investigate abuse of the

b) To set up telephone hot lines
to take reports of elder abuse.

>
the public about elder abuse and
what individuals can do about it.

3.
develop expertise among people
who work with seniors. Develop
support groups for family mem-
bers and friends looking after the
elderly.

4. a) All institutions caring for
elderly patients should develop
written standardized policies to
deal with incidents of abuse.

b) Review government regula-
tions to minimize stressful
relocation of residents between in-
stitutions.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

 

 

IN THE HAT

Education Centre Opened
Thank You from GDM
Exhibit

Music in the Morning
Athletics

Name Change

Craft Fair

Tupperware

Upcoming Events

Open House

 

Centre for International Ed.
Group Advising Sessions

A Mystery for Christmas
Matching Endowment Fund
Drop Out

Adult Education in B.C.
Theatre Production

Call to Artists

Innovation Abstracts