Kelly Vincent – 5RPH Interview on Elder Abuse
21/10/2015
On 21st October 2015, Dignity for Disability MLC Kelly Vincent was interviewed on radio station 5RPH to discuss the plans for the Social Development Committee to investigate elder abuse. Kelly Vincent also discusses some of the services that currently exist for older people who may be experiencing abuse in South Australia. Here is the audio and transcript from the interview.
Richard Morgan: Time to welcome once again to 5RPH once again, Dignity for Disability MLC Kelly Vincent. Hi Kelly.
Kelly Vincent: Hi Richard.
Richard Morgan: Kelly, I understand you’ve had a bit of a win in parliament last week. What issue do you have the parliament investigating?
Kelly Vincent: Look we did have a bit of a win Richard. We had unanimous support from the parliament after Dignity for Disability put forward a motion to the upper house, asking the Social Development Committee to investigate elder abuse. That is the abuse experienced by older South Australians. And the terms of reference that will now see the Committee, of which I am a member, are looking at include: the prevalence of abuse, including but not limited to financial abuse; physical; sexual abuse; psychological and social abuse; chemical abuse; and neglect experienced by older people in South Australia. As well as the most common forms of abuse experienced by older people and the most common relationships or settings in which that abuse occurs. We also want to look at the type of Government and/or community supports that are not only available to but are sought by on behalf of victims of abuse. We want to look at the adequacy of existing policies and resources and powers and expertise in preventing and responding to abuse and identifying of course ways to fulfil whatever gaps are out there in terms of the way we are responding to abuse. So we want to look at what types of abuse are occurring, how common they are, what types of relationships that abuse occurs in and also what the current gaps are in current services and what recommendations need to be put forward to make sure that we close them.
Richard Morgan: Now does elder abuse really occur? And if so what have you had reported to your office?
Kelly Vincent: Sadly it does occur Richard, it’s hard to believe that anyone would target people who may be more vulnerable because of their age, but sadly it does happen. In fact figures suggest that 3-5% of South Australian’s aged 65 and over have in fact been abused in some way and like many forms of abuse it is significantly underreported. There are some experts in the field who talk about the stigma associated with sexual abuse in particular of older women, but I guess that extends unfortunately to all types of abuse to some extent. Some of the cases my office have heard of refer to family members exploiting their older relatives where perhaps younger family members are trying to obtain access to the older person’s property and money, and put the older relative into a nursing home so that they can get access to that property and money, often exploiting mechanisms such as power of attorney. So we also hear more generic stories that are online and telemarketing scams and it would seem from those reports that older people can be more susceptible to them perhaps because they’re not as familiar with some modern technologies and therefore they’re less likely to recognise what we might recognise as a dodgy offer or a dodgy relationship online so we do need to look at these matters very seriously.
Richard Morgan: Finally tonight Kelly, what services currently exist in South Australia if older people want to seek assistance, or if someone wants to report elder abuse?
Kelly Vincent: There are certainly a number of existing services out there that people can use. In particular, we would suggest the Aged Rights Advocacy Service or ARAS can help. They get many phone calls each day and help support victims of elder abuse. Their number is 8232 5377. So the Aged Rights Advocacy Service offers a free, confidential state-wide service for older people or their representatives or support people who are consumers or potential consumers of community based aged care services, including aged care packages; people living in a retirement village; consumers or potential consumers of services in Australian Government subsidised aged care facilities; or people who are at risk of, or who are experiencing abuse by someone that they should be able to trust. So ARAS is certainly a good place to go if you know someone or you are someone who is experiencing abuse of any kind on the basis of age. We would suggest that you get in contact with them. And of course the Council for the Ageing or COTA is also doing a great job at advocating for the rights of South Australians on a broader policy level. So those are two services I can think of the people may want to get in touch with if they are experiencing anything they are concerned about and of course they can contact my office on 8237 9543 as well.
Richard Morgan: Kelly, good to talk with you again.
Kelly Vincent: That’s a pleasure, thanks Richard for your interest.
Richard Morgan: Dignity for Disability MLC Kelly Vincent.
