The younger generation expects they will be comfortable at home and respected by their families in their old age. Still, many elderly Indians are in for an unfavorable surprise. Uniformly underreported, elder abuse is a severe and widely unappreciated problem that impacts thousands of seniors across the nation. A shocking survey done in slum areas of Bhubaneswar also depicted that about 19.4% of older people were ill-treated in the past year. This proportion explains a situation that needs attention and a solution immediately. Due to aging concerns in India, the identification of prevalence, pattern, and risk factors of elder abuse is imperative in designing interventions and services for the vulnerable elderly population.
Key Elder Abuse in India Statistics
- Overall prevalence of elder abuse: 19.4%
- Emotional abuse: 11.1%
- Verbal abuse: 6.9%
- Financial abuse: 4.2%
- Physical abuse: 3.3%
- Multiple types of abuse (poly victimization): 6.4%
- Depression is significantly associated with elder abuse (OR = 2.30)
Detailed Analysis of Elder Abuse Patterns
The findings gained from the study carried out with the clients of urban slums in Bhubaneswar serve as an insight into the type of elder abuse in India. Emotional abuse appeared as the most common type experienced by 11 percent of the respondents. 1% of the participants. This category results in things such as confining the older adult’s movements or giving them the feeling that they are useless. Physical: 8 persons reported to be bullied using foul language or threats. Regarding the forms of Violence, 9% of the participants identified insults and humiliating language.
Abuse by financial exploitation was the least reported type of abuse. However, it was an issue for 4 associates. Of the respondents among the older adults, only 2%. Physical abuse comes last with a mean of 3.3%, which is still high. By using this concept as a heuristic tool, researchers have been able to figure out that despite the progressive growth of the Western nations’ economy to about 12%, the problem of racism that was evident in these economies before the world war remains a serious concern as it stands at 3%. Alarmingly, 6. On getting the final results, 4 % of the participants reported multiple forms of elder abuse, thus proving that elder abuse is a multifaceted issue.
Risk Factors and Perpetrators
This study established that depression posed a big risk to elder abuse. Depressed persons were 2.5 times more likely to be abused than non-depressed persons, specifically, out of the first group, and, based on the logistic regression analysis, 29% could be abused at some point in time compared to 12% of the second group. The existence of such a problem underlines the necessity of paying more attention to elderly people’s mental health.
The study also brought to light some unpleasant findings concerning the abusers of such patients. Many of the cases highlighted sons and daughters-in-law as the major offenders in the abuse of the older generations. This underlines the necessity of interventions to change families’ dynamics and encourage intergenerational respect and compassion.
Challenges in Reporting and Prevention
Even though elder abuse is quite rampant, it is one of the most underreported vices. The research indicates that the actual reportage of abuse is only 1 in every 24. This low reporting rate has been known to be influenced by several aspects, such as being financially dependent on an abusive partner, paranoia/fear of reprisal, and social rejection. Stopping these barriers to reporting is vital in coming up with successful prevention and intercession measures.
Conclusion
Consequently, the study findings in Bhubaneswar informed a disturbing situation of elder abuse in the urban slums of India. It is unbecoming of the twenty-first century to witness nearly one-fifth of older people being subjected to some form of abuse, hence the need for proper programs to respond to this vice. These should include spreading publicity on causes of such evacuation, enhancing vigor in observing the aging parents and relatives, and ensuring that mechanisms will compel the person or the company to adhere to the laws laid down. Now that India is steadily progressing towards creating a demographically old country, safeguarding the human rights of seniors will become necessary for legislators, care and nursing givers, and the public.
