When Elder Abuse Happens

When Eric Einhart was a student at New York Law School, his grandmother called to check on him. “Are you OK?” she asked. He told her he was fine. She said she’d just received an attempted scam call from someone saying that Einhart had been arrested in Canada and needed bail money. “She had the wherewithal to recognize what was going on, hang up on the person, and contact me to confirm I was OK,” Einhart says, “just in case there was the slightest possibility of it being true.”

Scams like the one targeting Einhart’s grandmother are just one example of the risks that older adults face. Einhart, who practices estate planning and elder law as a partner at the Russo Law Group in Garden City, says it’s an issue that is not going away: “Elder abuse is a huge problem, completely devastating, costs billions of dollars for society, and devastates families.”

Elizabeth Forspan, a partner at Forspan Klear, says averting abuse starts with a good estate plan. “From a financial perspective, the advance planning piece is very important,” she says. “It all goes together to prevent the abuse and the neglect.” For example, when a family member is entering a long-term care facility, those with enough funds may be able to hire a private aide, who can help safeguard a loved one from abuse.

Part of advance planning includes assembling key documents like advance directives. A power of attorney, says Forspan, allows an individual to appoint someone to help with financial decisions in the event that they become incapacitated. 

“I recommend that all competent adults should have a durable power of attorney, health care proxy, HIPAA authorization, and a living will, depending on their wishes for end-of-life care,” says Einhart. “Those documents will allow a person’s wishes to be honored and carried out by a person that they know and trust,” he says.

Before a loved one is moved to a facility of any kind, Einhart says to conduct thorough research. “Ask questions about the facility, take a tour of the entire facility—not just the forward-facing areas and the lobby,” he says, “and talk to the other residents’ family members who might be visiting.”

Of course, no matter how well a family might plan for the future, neglect or abuse of a loved one could still occur. Since the start of the pandemic, says Forspan, the protocols for treating individuals within facilities have changed. If a patient has a cold or COVID, they may be put in isolation for a time, which might result in fewer visits from the nursing staff. “I wouldn’t say we’ve seen an increase in neglect in a kind of gross negligence kind of way, but in a realistic way,” she says.

And if you suspect neglect or abuse has occurred, both attorneys stress that the first step should be to safely remove the person from the facility in question. Then call the authorities, such as law enforcement and the Department of Health, to report the situation, and get copies of medical records. “Document everything,” adds Einhart. “Document as much as you can as quickly as you can. Write down everything you think or you fear may have happened, and take photos of all potential injuries.”

Such steps are crucial, he says, in the event that you need to file a lawsuit. “It is usually a personal injury attorney who will bring a civil action against a facility,” Einhart says.

Says Forspan: “When they’re in a facility, whether it’s a hospital, a rehab, or a long-term care facility, the best thing you can do for your loved one is to advocate. The old expression ‘the squeaky wheel gets the grease?’ When you advocate, they’re going to take care of your loved one.”