During the fiscal year of July 1, 2020, to June 30, 2021, close to 40,000 Reports of Need (RONs) were made to PA Older Adult Protective Services and almost 32% of those reports were listed as caregiver neglect.
Older adults who lack the capacity to protect themselves are at imminent risk of abuse, neglect, exploitation or abandonment. To improve the quality of care and quality of life of these older adults with services necessary to protect their health, safety and welfare, organizations who provide direct care or otherwise indirectly provide support must be unwaveringly committed to safeguarding the rights of this vulnerable population.
With this issue at the forefront, invited guests from the Pennsylvania Department of Aging (PDA), Stephanie Cole, special assistant to the secretary, and Denise Getgen, director of protective services, visited the Penn State Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing on Nov. 3 and 4 to talk about elder abuse and prevention, and to explore synergies around their mutual visions, missions, and goals.
The two-day visit was a collaborative effort between the Tressa Nese and Helen Diskevich Center of Geriatric Nursing Excellence (CGNE) and the Age-Friendly Care, PA (AFCPA) initiative, both housed within the Nese College of Nursing, and co-facilitated by Janice Whitaker, CGNE administrator and community liaison, and Erica Husser, AFCPA project director.
The CGNE, AFCPA, and PDA highlighted the center and college's efforts in the areas of workforce issues, continuum of care for older adults, areas of expertise, ways they are impacting quality of care and quality of life, and the discussion of potential areas of future collaboration.
Getgen presented "Elder Abuse in PA" to primary health care providers as part of AFCPA’s 4Ms of Age- and Dementia-Friendly Care Project ECHO (Education for Community Health Outcomes), and "Elder Abuse Prevention" to undergraduate nursing students in NURS 31: Care of Older Adults course.
After, a collaborative meeting was led by CGNE leaders Janice Whitaker and Marie Boltz, which involved 18 faculty and staff showcasing the various projects that align with the PA State Plan on Aging, further discussion and networking took place at a dinner meeting at The Tavern Restaurant.
On the second day of the event, the three organizations met for breakfast at the Penn Stater with Ken Pendleton, director of Centre County Office of Aging. Afterwards, Cole and Getgen presented "What Nurses and Other Health Professionals Need to Know About Elder Abuse," and the CGNE & AFCPA followed up the meeting with PDA to discuss potential collaborations and next steps.