Elder Abuse

     Elder abuse is described as an act occurring within a relationship where there is an application of trust, which results in harm to an older person.  Abuse can be physical, sexual, financial, psychological, social and or neglect (ANPEA, 1999).

      For example, when I was a property manager of an Aboriginal seniors building for five years in Toronto in early 2000 and witnessed so much abuse toward senior citizens from their family members.  Even in death it was prevalent.  Adult children (riddled with drug dependence and alcoholism) of the deceased would not take time to mourn and simply wanted access to their units to obtain financials. A deep profound sadness crept in my heart.   Historically, when an individual leaves for the spirit world, everything is left untouched for a period of year. Why were our people in the city so lost?  My parents and grandparents taught me to not only respect the land but also my elders.  I established a Crisis Intervention Team and partnered with an Aboriginal Seniors Program to provide a support system.

      The necessity of relying on others for basic survival created native societies that believed in the intrinsic worth of all community members.  Each member was given the same respect.  The elders performed gender related tasks for as long as they could.  In addition, they were seen as community mediators, story tellers, teachers of children, and community advisors. (Williamson, P. & Roberts J., 2011).

      Today the abuse is much more rampant in First Nation communities due to the prescription pill epidemic.  Seniors in our communities are easy targets.  My own family member was a victim as she lives alone.  A few youth in our first nation decided to gain access to a locked house through a basement window.  My family member had a lot of valuable items within her home, however, the youth only took her medication, Tylenol 3’s.  As this was the second incident within a short period of time, her doctor would not give her anymore medication.   The doctor explained it was due to recent narcotic legislation. She suffered in pain for two and half weeks before she could get a refill.

There is an initiative from the Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC, 2012), organizers take the stance that to understand Aboriginal senior abuse, one must first consider the historical and ongoing impacts of colonization on Aboriginal communities.  

Miigwetch,

Janet

REFERENCES

Austrailian Prevention Network of Elder Abuse, Active Ageing , A Policy Framework (WHO 2002)  Retrieved from:
htpp://anpea/elderabuse/aciveageing/apolicyframework.html

Native Women's Association of Canada - Breaking the Silence on Senior Abuse in Aboriginal Communities Retrieved from: htpp://nativewomensassociaionofcanada/breakingthesilience/2012/elderabuse.html

Williamson, P. & Roberts, J.  First Nation's People's, 2nd ed. Publisher, E.Montgomery