Hidden & Invisible: Seniors Abuse in BC

We care about our seniors, or on the surface, we appear to care deeply about the older adults in our community. The depth of this commitment was on full display during the COVID-19 pandemic as we saw tens of thousands of people step forward to ensure seniors received their medications, groceries and remained connected through friendly phone calls and wellness checks. Public concern about the dignity and safety of frail seniors who live in long-term care were heard by governments at all levels and commitments to improve were quickly promised.

While we appear to care, those who track abuse and neglect of seniors have tracked a five-year pattern of significantly increasing reports of seniors’ abuse and neglect. In the past three to five years, according to the senior advocate we have  experienced:

•        49% increase in reports of abuse, neglect and self-neglect to Designated Agencies

•        69% increase in reports of victims of violent crime to the RCMP

•        87% increase in reports of physical abuse and 49% increase of financial abuse to the Vancouver Police Force

•        30% increase in reports of abuse to bc211

•        5% increase in reports to the Seniors Abuse and Information Line

There is a concern that the reporting and tracking system in BC is fragmented and incomplete leaving many to believe there is significant under-reporting of abuse and neglect among older adults. Supporting this assumption of under-reporting is the number of suspected reports of child abuse reported each year compared to reported cases of suspected seniors’ abuse. While both population groups are of similar size, there is an average of 60,000 such reports made for children and youth each year compared to less than 10,000 reports of suspected abuse and neglect of seniors.

In a survey, when asked if they have ever witnessed a senior subjected to abuse and neglect, 28% of British Columbians reported they have and although over 90% believe they would report abuse if they witnessed it, less than half actually do. There are a number of systemic challenges in our current adult abuse and neglect system that are limiting the potential for British Columbians to effectively identify and report suspected abuse and neglect of seniors.

While there are a number of resources to identify and report seniors’ abuse and neglect, there is no cohesive provincial approach to support the public in their desire to identify and report seniors’ abuse and neglect. A review in 2021 by the Senior Advocate found a lack of standardization in defining seniors’ abuse and neglect, no current plan to raise public awareness and a fragmented reporting system that does not produce the reliable data needed to assess patterns, identify gaps, make improvements and measure progress. There was also clear evidence, however, that our current system can be effective and many of the basic tenants are sound. The challenge is that the system is not reliably effective, and many vulnerable seniors may be falling through the cracks.

The review examined the protections that exist for BC seniors, the prevalence of seniors’ abuse and neglect, the method of reporting abuse and neglect, and the response to reports of seniors’ abuse and neglect. The report examined current legislative protections, assesses reporting practices, reviews five years of existing data, consults with 144 stakeholders in 25 communities throughout BC, and surveys over 1500 British Columbians.

The report includes five recommendations:

1.     Establish provincial standards of practice, policies, and front-line training to respond to seniors’ abuse and neglect

2.     Create province-wide public awareness initiatives and training on seniors’ abuse and neglect

3.     Develop a central, single point of contact to report calls of concern of seniors’ abuse and neglect

4.     Ensure consistent data collection, methods, and definitions to record, track and monitor abuse and neglect cases

5.     Undertake a full comprehensive review of the Adult Guardianship Act