Elder abuse in Canada and Australia: implications for nurses Original Research Article

This paper examines the issue of elder abuse from a Canadian and Australian perspective. A research project was undertaken in Canada and Australia to identify registered nursesʹ knowledge about the types of abuse, skill at recognition and comfort counselling and intervening in cases of elder abuse. Although a phenomenon that has probably been in existence for many years, it is only during the last decade that elder abuse has come into prominence as an important aspect of family violence. A recent Canadian report records that elder abuse today is at the same level of publicity as wife abuse 10 years ago (Canadian Nurses Association, 1993). It is estimated that as many as 4% of the elderly population in each country are exposed to elder abuse (Podneiks and Pillemer, 1990, National Survey on Abuse of the Elderly in Canada, Ryerson Polytechnic Inst., Toronto; Kurrle et al., 1992, Modern Med. Austral., September, pp. 58–71). This takes the form of physical, emotional as well as financial abuse.