Addressing Elder Abuse in Rural Areas

Elder abuse, including financial, physical, and emotional abuse, as well as self-neglect, is too common and has serious implications for the health and well-being of older adults. Rural residents are older, on average, than urban residents, and rural older adults are in poorer health and have higher rates of disabilities than urban older adults. This may make rural older adults a more common target of elder abuse; however, little is known about rural/urban differences in the extent of elder abuse. Even less is known about within-rural differences in elder abuse by socio-demographic and geographic factors. This project will address those important gaps using two national data sources combined with qualitative data from a series of key informant interviews.

Publications

• Triad Program Perspectives on Preventing and Addressing Elder Abuse in Rural Communities
  Policy Brief
  University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
  Date: 11/2024
  Elder abuse is a widespread issue and rural communities face unique risks to preventing, identifying, and addressing it. This brief shares results from key informant interviews with representatives of rural Triads (multi-sectoral community-based partnerships that address elder abuse) to illuminate rural-specific dimensions of this issue.
• Variation in Elder Abuse State Statutes by State Level of Rurality
  Policy Brief
  University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
  Date: 12/2024
  This policy brief examines elements of state-level elder abuse statutes' definitions and reporting requirements to investigate potential differences in these policies by state rurality that could influence one's understanding of elder abuse among rural and urban areas.