MOmentum for Change Season 5, Episode 6: Elder Abuse with Jessica Rooks and Catherine Vannier

And I thought as we're getting started, it might be helpful to just get on the same page with a definition of elder abuse.

So what are we talking about when we use the term elder abuse? What's a good definition that you all would speak to? Should I go? Sure.

We'd love to hear from you, Katherine, always.

So what I think of is we start with an expectation of trust, and then somebody has taken advantage of that expectation of trust.

And specifically in the elder abuse realm, with either of an older person or of a person with disabilities, And we see that kind of abuse, it takes a myriad of forms.

It can be neglect.

It can be physical.

It can be sexual.

It can be emotional.

It can be financial.

And it's very, very common.

I love that you use that term around the expectation of trust because I think unlike domestic and sexual violence, that opens it up to the abuse of power that should be somebody that you trust.

So it could be an intimate partner or it could be a caretaker.

So we're really talking about a wide range of scenarios when it comes to elder abuse.

So I'm really glad you used that phrasing.

Is there anything else you would add to just understanding what elder abuse is, Jessica?

I think that we're also seeing in our society this change in what we see as elder abuse.

And I think technology has played a huge role in that.

So before we would see elder abuse as something that would tangibly would happen maybe with your next door neighbor or a caregiver that came into the home.

But now we're starting to see threats come from places or people that that you've never seen, that you've never visually encountered, but you may form deep relationships with, whether that's through technology such as Facebook or someone reaching out to you and taking advantage of you through the phone.

There are so many more avenues that I think elder abuse is spreading and taking a lot of different forms.

Absolutely.

I can't wait to get into that conversation around technology and scams with you both because you're so right.

This is almost like a new frontier that we're facing when we're talking about elder abuse.

But before we get into that, I want to talk about some legal protections.