Plan to stamp out elder abuse
A new South Australian Government plan to reduce elder abuse aims to provide older people with a greater sense of safety and wellbeing.
A new South Australian Government plan to reduce elder abuse aims to provide older people with a greater sense of safety and wellbeing.
South Australian Minister for Ageing, Zoe Bettison, launched the Strategy to Safeguard the Rights of Older South Australians – Action Plan 2015 – 2021 at the Aged Rights Advocacy Service (ARAS) World Elder Abuse Awareness Day Conference in Adelaide this week.
The plan will help to raise public awareness of elder abuse and includes:
- piloting a telephone helpline and establishing a new information website
- training for carers, nurses and other public sector workers
- support for further research
- special projects for Indigenous and migrant communities
Other resources will be provided for carers managing the financial affairs of older people.
Minister Bettison says research suggests elder abuse is more common than people realise and that the State government is responding by implementing new measures to help to raise awareness of the issue.
“Older South Australians should not be at risk of any form of abuse by people they know and trust, particularly during vulnerable periods,” Minister Bettison says.
The most common types of abuse are psychological and financial, and 80 per cent of it is carried out by a family member.
“South Australians are living longer than at any time previously and they deserve to enjoy these later years free of undue influence and abuse. We will work with councils to create more age-friendly communities which provide older people with active ageing opportunities including for recreation and volunteering,” she says.
According to Minister Bettison, the strategy aims to provide “autonomy, freedom from harm, dignity and enjoyment of life” for Australia's ageing population.
The action plan was developed through partnership between state government, the non government sector, peak bodies associated with ageing, experts from universities, representatives from South Australian Aboriginal and migrant communities, and the federal and local government.
Download or find out more about the Strategy to Safeguard the Rights of Older South Australians – Action Plan 2015 – 2021.
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