It's Time to Talk About Sexual Abuse of Older Adults
What is sexual abuse of older adults?
Sexual Abuse is "non-consensual sexual contact of any kind with an older adult. Sexual contact with any person incapable of giving consent is also considered sexual abuse." (Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), 2012
Sexual abuse is any act by violence or force:
- Unwanted sexual touching or kissing
- Fondling or sexual intercourse without consent
- Unnecessary touching of the genital area that is not part of the care plan
- Making sexual remarks or suggestions
- Forced viewing of pornography
Systemic Barriers for older LGBTQ adults
- Profound invisibility - presumed to be heterosexual
- Face real dangers of neglect, discrimination and discomfort from staff, other residents and families of other residents
- Long-term relationships are devalued - couples in long-term relationships may be separated
- Definitions of "family" are based almost exclusively on biological kin
- Self-advocacy may be delicate & difficult if they are not 'out'
(Rainbow Health Ontario)
This toolkit was designed for agencies supporting older victims who are vulnerable, at-risk or experiencing abuse. Whether the individual is an older woman or man, the Safety Planning Toolkit provides important information about family and partner violence. It also provides suggestions and strategies to help protect older adults in situations of risk or danger and how to maintain their safety and security.
Domestic violence and sexual assault programs are increasingly using social networks, such as Facebook. There are many benefits to joining a social network: networking with peers, reaching out to potential funders and allies, and raising awareness. However, there are legitimate concerns about safety risks and confidentiality. What to Post Remember that nothing online is completely private and even social network pages that are set to "private" may still be accessible by others. So think about what you share online, how it represents your organization, and who can potentially see it. Be careful about posting information about your colleagues; whether it's a link, a video, or a picture, get their consent before you post it. Never share personal information about survivors without a written release.
Elder abuse is a global health problem (Sherman, Rosenblatt & Antonucci, 2008). Despite the United Nations (UN) call in 1991 for dignity for all aging populations, elder abuse, "one of the most perplexing crimes of our times" continues (Sev'er, 2009, p. 279). Given that older people are the fastest growing subgroup of people worldwide, and the number of people over 60 years of age is expected to almost triple within the next few decades from 672 million in 2005 to nearly 1.9 billion by 2050 (UN, 2004), the rates of elder abuse are likely to increase.
This Manual identifies best practice issues and provides practical guidelines for Stopping The Violence Counselling, for both clinical and administrative practices. It is the hope of the B.C. Association of Specialized Victim Assistance and Counselling Programs (BCASVACP) and the authors that this Manual can support STV counsellors by identifying practices that can be applied consistently province wide, despite the wide variety in programs. The Manual is not comprehensive, nor is it a policies and procedures manual, although policy issues are addressed. Group work is one important part of STV counselling that is not addressed, although a list of group work resources is included in Section 8.1.
Who is This Handbook For?
This handbook has been developed to assist anti-violence workers to provide information and emotional and practical support to survivors of sexual assault. It will be of use to community-based victim service workers, sexual assault support workers, Stopping the Violence Counsellors, outreach workers, multicultural outreach workers, Band workers, immigrant and settlement workers, medical personnel, social workers, advocates, police-based victim service workers, and anyone a survivor may go to for help. For the sake of simplicity, we will largely use the terms "antiviolence worker" and "support worker" throughout this manual.