Finding a Caring Caregiver

If an elderly loved one needs at-home care, how do you select a professional caregiver? With careful screening of the person or agency before making your choice.

Tragically, some caregivers physically or verbally abuse their patients — or simply neglect them. And financial exploitation, which leaves no visible marks, can be just as devastating.

Unfortunately, one does not need to look far for examples:

• A Georgia homecare nurse caught on an ATM camera using her elderly patient's debit card, was indicted on charges of elder abuse and financial transaction card fraud for swiping more than $7,500 from the 86-year-old victim, $2 to $300 at a time.
• In Illinois, a hospital nursing assistant befriended her 89-year-old dementia patient, and upon his discharge became his round-the-clock caregiver. Prosecutors say she obtained a power-of-attorney, allowing her to steal over $350,000 from his estate which she used to buy a new Mercedes, remodel her home, and enrich herself and her family. The caregiver was held on $350,000 bail and faces up to 15 years in prison on charges of felony financial exploitation of a senior.

Lack of caregiver screening, training, and experience accounts for many cases of elder abuse. As the Huffington Post reports, the Journal of American Geriatrics Society published a study finding that, nationwide, many caregivers are dangerously unqualified because agencies fail to conduct background checks, drug testing, or to require experience or training of new hires. Researchers conducting the study surveyed 180 agencies, but found that only 55 percent conducted federal background checks, and one-third administered drug tests.

The article includes these tips for choosing a caregiver:

• Use a checklist to review the candidate or agency (click here and here for checklists).
• Set clear expectations before interviewing candidates, and create a daily activity timeline.
• Involve the senior in the interview.
• Assess the caregiver's degree of specialty and training.
• Check references and conduct an independent background check.

ABCs of Elder Abuse

It started with Rodney Chapman mowing Gwendolyn Swank's lawn and doing handyman jobs around her mobile home. They lived across the street from each other in a mobile home park in Pemaquid, Maine, which has the oldest median age in the country. Chapman became Gwendolyn Swank's best friend and worst enemy.

Gwendolyn worked her whole life as a bookkeeper and accumulated over $300,000 in assets. Six years after Chapman befriended her, the balance in Swank's retirement nest egg was 37 cents. On June 12th, 85-year-old Gwendolyn was awarded $1.3 million against Chapman who is serving a five-year sentence for theft and has no ability to pay the judgment.

According to Detective Robert McFetridge who specializes in elder abuse cases, this case followed the ABCs of how to steal money from an elderly person, "A, befriend them. B, slowly start making them dependent on you. C, isolate them from other people. D, take everything they own."

After befriending her, Chapman convinced Gwendolyn to invest in an auto repair and recovery business which she's not sure ever existed. Then Chapman learned that Gwendolyn was scared about illegal drug activity in the area so he fed her fear by pounding on her trailer at night, telling her to stay inside, took her phone away, and restricted visitors and the use of her car, telling her it was for her own safety.

McFetridge investigated the case and said, "In my opinion, it's just as serious as if he had beaten her within an inch of her life … By the time we intervened, she was down to living on peanut butter and rice cakes. She was really a prisoner in her own home."

Tips for protecting yourself against elder abuse:

• Stay socially active and engaged
• Do not let anyone rush or pressure you into signing a document, purchasing something, or giving away your money or property
• Build relationships with the professionals who advise you or handle your money
• Avoid joint accounts
• Powers of attorney are useful and important tools, but can be misused

Click here for a directory of state helplines and elder abuse prevention resources.

FTC Video: Sharing Information

In today's world of smart phones, smart grids, and smart cars, companies are collecting, storing, and sharing more and more information about you. In fact, as illustrated by a new video from the Federal Trade Commission, you might not realize just how often companies do so.

The Cost of Abuse

There's pressure to make the prevention of child maltreatment a priority in the US – but it's not because of the government report about the estimated 695,000 victims of child mistreatment in 2010.

Instead, it's due to the economic burden of dealing with the long-term consequences of child abuse that makes a strong case for devoting public resources to the prevention of child maltreatment.

A study published in Child Abuse & Neglect (2012) calculated the public financial cost of child abuse at about $124 billion each year. When broken down, the "productivity loss" plus the expense to the country's criminal justice, education, health care, and welfare systems adds up to a lifetime cost of $210,012 per victim.

The annual price tag of child abuse is comparable to health problems like stroke and type 2 diabetes, leading researchers to conclude that "Child Maltreatment is a serious and prevalent public health problem in the United States, responsible for substantial morbidity and mortality."

So, if the human cost wasn't enough to make child abuse prevention and treatment services a priority, now we also know that we cannot afford the financial costs of failing to fund these critical services.

Child Victims of the Recession

While the recession's unemployment numbers climbed in 2008-2009, pediatricians saw a significant increase in another troubling statistic: the number of cases of abusive head trauma from child abuse. A study reported in the Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics concludes that "these results are concerning and suggest that prevention efforts might need to be increased significantly during times of economic hardship."

Unfortunately, prevention efforts have suffered in these times of severe budget cuts. For example, $91 million was cut from the budget for Arizona's Department of Economic Security that oversees Child Protective Services (CPS) at a time when five reports to CPS did not save a six-year-old Phoenix boy who died after suffering a brain bruise and other injuries. His parents have been charged with child abuse.

Dr. Mary Rimsza oversees the agency responsible for investigating child fatalities in Arizona. She points out that, in addition to the decreased budget and increased demand for CPS during bad economic times, CPS experiences a job turnover rate of 25% each year due to the stressful nature of the work.

With CPS resources stretched thin, Dr. Rimsza says, "You really shouldn't turn the other direction and say 'well somebody else will take care of this kid' or 'it's none of my business' because it is your business. Everybody in the community has a role in trying to keep our kids safe."