Welcome to the NYC Elder Abuse Center’s (NYCEAC) monthly round-up of news links & resources by & for elder justice professionals!
We’d love to hear from you! Contact us at info@nyceac.org or via Twitter at @NYCElderAbuse.
BREAKING NEWS IN ELDER JUSTICE!
October was Domestic Violence Awareness Month and many organizations shined a spotlight on abuse in later life.
Say No More to Elder Abuse
The National Clearinghouse on Abuse in Later Life (NCALL) joined the No More campaign by developing a YouTube video entitled No More Abuse in Later Life.
News Coverage Extends Focus to Later Life
The Eagle Tribune brought attention to the lack of reporting of elder domestic violence, and Huffington Post Canada featured an article on predatory marriages.
Elder Justice Leaders Raise Awareness
Kathy Greenlee, Assistant Secretary for Aging and Administrator of the Administration for Community Living (ACL) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), highlighted the difficulties for older adults and adults with disabilities to gain access to domestic violence resources. Bonnie Brandl, Director of NCALL, joined Secretary Greenlee in the call for more coordination and collaboration among domestic violence and sexual assault advocates and elder justice providers.
PROFESSIONAL RESOURCES
Adult Protective Services (APS) Research to Practice Webinar Series Available
The National Council on Crime & Delinquency created a new online archive of several APS Research to Practice webinar series videos, which have been sponsored by the National Adult Protective Services Association and National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse Research Committee.
EMPLOYMENT
Staff Attorney
Legal Services NYC – Bronx seeks a full-time staff attorney for their Family and Immigration Unit. The staff attorney would specialize in advising and representing survivors of intimate partner violence, elder abuse and human trafficking.
Later in Life Program Coordinator
The New York Asian Women’s Center (NYAWC) seeks a Later in Life Program Coordinator who will spearhead NYAWC’s effort to provide leadership in ensuring that the issues, concerns, needs and problems of Asian and Asian American abused older adult survivors are adequately addressed.
EVENTS
JASA Elder Abuse Training Institute
Register now for JASA’s Elder Abuse Training Institute! Workshops start November 19th and include: Elder Abuse 101; Trauma, Violence, and Abuse in Later Life; The Role of the Social Work Professional: Assisting Underserved Populations; Legal Options When the Abuser is Mentally Ill; and Health/Mental Health Perspectives on Addressing Elder Abuse.
National Center for Victims of Crime Webinar Series
Sign up now for The National Center for Victims of Crime’s webinar series “Recognize, Report and Recover,” dedicated to responding to elder financial exploitation, with installments for four Fridays in November and December.
ELDER JUSTICE IN NYC
Catherine Christian Photo Courtesy of the New York Law Journal
New Chief of the Manhattan DA’s Elder Abuse Unit
Learn more about Catherine Christian, the new chief of the Manhattan District Attorney Office Elder Abuse Unit from the New York Law Journal article featuring her transition to this position.
ELDER JUSTICE IN THE NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Pope Francis Photo Courtesy of the Catholic Church England and Wales
The Pope Speaks Out Against Elder Abuse
This month the Pope spoke out against elder abuse in a speech made to older adults assembled in Vatican Square. “Violence against the elderly is as inhuman as that against children,” Pope Francis said, “How many times are old people just discarded, victims of an abandonment that is tantamount to hidden euthanasia.”
The White House Conference on Aging
The White House Conference on Aging has launched it’s new website! The website provides many ways to get involved; sign up to receive weekly emails, weigh in on aging issues and share experiences.
Administration for Community Living (ACL) Reorganized
The ACL has reorganized to better align missions and incorporate the Paralysis Resource Center and the State Health Insurance Assistance Programs (SHIP). The new structure includes an expansion of the Office of Elder Rights to the Office of Elder Justice and Adult Protective Services.
Department of Justice: Using Theory in Research
The Department of Justice has released the summary from the Elder Mistreatment: Using Theory in Research meeting held in June of 2014. The meeting resulted in the development of 25 recommendations to increase the use of theory in elder justice research.
Financial Exploitation
The Allianz Life Insurance Company released their 2014 Safeguarding Our Seniors Study, which found that the average financial loss for a victim of financial exploitation is about $30,000 and more than 10% of victims said they suffered losses of $100,000 or more. As a result of their study, the Allianz Life Insurance Company has created a course for their financial advisors on preventing elder abuse.
New Elder Justice Center Opens in Minnesota
The Minnesota Elder Justice Center has opened and unites and expands the work the Vulnerable Adult Justice Project and Stop Abuse and Financial Exploitation (S.A.F.E.) Elders and will work to build public awareness, deliver professional education and inform public policy. Email Iris Freeman at iris.freeman@wmitchell.edu or Amanda Vickstrom at amanda.vickstrom@elderjusticemn.org for more information.
Jacob Smith, Vince Wiraatmadja & Marisa Shea, Photo Courtesy of University of the Pacific
Los Angeles Recieves Grant & Students Draft Elder Abuse Law
Los Angeles received a $1.6 million grant from the Department of Justice and Verizon Corp to train police officers to recognize the signs of elder abuse. This training requirement will be expanded state wide since two McGeorge Law School students at University of the Pacific drafted legislation that was passed into California law which will mandate that police officers receive training within 18 months of field placement.
Los Angeles Elder Abuse Victim Found in Maine
Sarah Cheiker was living alone in California when she vanished and four years later she was found alone, living in squalor in a cabin in a remote area of Maine. Ms. Cheiker was the victim of a severe case of financial exploitation, neglect and abandonment and now lives in an assisted living facility in Maine.
By, Elizabeth Bloemen, MPH Social Media Associate NYC Elder Abuse Center
RELATED STORIES
News & Resources Roundup- September 2014
News & Resources Roundup- August 2014
Cultivating New Elder Justice Professionals: The Risk & Resiliency Internship Project
Intimate Partner Violence or Elder Abuse? Considering Age, Gender and Elder Justice
