Transcript
Speaker: This is not just another medical podcast or true crime series. This is the voice of forensic nursing in Canada. This is Beyond the Rape Kit, Canada's Forensic Frontline.
Speaker: We're the Canadian Forensic Nurses Association. We're pulling back the curtain on what really happens when trauma meets healthcare, when survivors seek justice, and when nurses stand at the front lines of both.
Speaker: Follow us today Spotify, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Blue Sky.
Speaker: Today I want to tell you a story. A story about a neighbour. During the winter, in a quiet suburban cul-de-sac, a neighbour noticed something small.
Speaker: An older man who used to shovel his driveway every morning had stopped coming outside. Suddenly his curtains stayed closed, his mail piled up, and when his neighbor finally knocked on his door, she was met not by him, but by a relative who insisted everything was just fine.
Speaker: But something felt off. So she called for a wellness check. What police found during that wellness check was a situation far more complex than anybody had expected.
Speaker: Financial exploitation, untreated medical needs, and a man who had been slowly isolated from the world around him. Of course, he didn't see himself as a victim.
Speaker: He didn't want to get anyone in trouble. He just wanted his life back. I wish stories like this were rare, but they're happening in communities across Canada, often quietly, often invisibly.
Speaker: But today we're going to talk about how police investigate these cases, what they look for, and how we can all play a role in protecting older adults. Welcome back to Beyond the Rape Kit, Canada's Forensic Frontline.
Speaker: I'm forensic nurse practitioner Hannah Varto, and today I'm exploring a topic that affects families and communities across Canada, but often stays hidden, the abuse of elders.
Speaker: You know, whether it's financial exploitation, neglect, or physical harm, or emotional manipulation, older adults do face some unique vulnerabilities and unique barriers to reporting.
Speaker: So to help us understand how these cases are investigated and what supports exist, we're joined today by Constable Tracy Conboy, who specializes in responding to elder abuse.
Speaker: Tracy has been a member of the Calgary Police Service for 11 and a half years, with six and a half years of experience working as a patrol constable and a member of the Domestic Conflict Unit working as an Elder Abuse Response Team Constable, EART. From her experience working with vulnerable persons and seniors on patrol, Constable Convoy pursued a position as a member of the EART team due to her interest in supporting and valuing seniors that find themselves in situations where criminal offenses have or might occur.
Speaker: She tells me that this work has proven to be meaningful and challenging due to the complexities that may be present in working with seniors in our communities. Tracy, thank you so much for being here. and Just before we sort of get into the the nuts and the bolts of this today, could you just share a little bit about your role and how you came to focus specifically on elder abuse investigations?
Speaker: I would say um it started way back when I was young. I did experience, well, actually watching my grandmother be physically abused by my grandfather. um He was an alcoholic, so for many years I would see, you know, bruises on her and, you know, she'd be upset We go stay with her and, you know, there'd be lots of volatile situations and things. And I couldn't understand why no one would help her. No one would, you know, no one called the police. It was 30 years ago. So it wasn't really, i don't think anything really people talked about. Maybe people didn't know how to navigate it. Maybe she wasn't willing. I don't know what that looked like, but I did have a, like, I really, it really imprinted on me that I couldn't, I just couldn't understand why people weren't helping.
Speaker: And I really think that that developed in me this sense of like wanting to help people in situations like that. watching the injustice really bothered me as a child. So it really developed. And I really knew at a young age that I wanted to be a police officer. I didn't join until later on in life, like after my kids were bigger and those kinds of things. um But working on the streets in in Calgary, I did experience and like attend a lot of calls involving seniors. And I could really see the complexities of the situations they were in and knowing like when you're on patrol, it is hard to to dive into
Speaker: all the things and, you know, looking for resources and all that kind of stuff, because there's always another call to go to that's exigent. So I really um wanted to be part of that. And I, and I did pursue this actual position. So, and it's a five-year position. And so I've been here for four and a half now. um So I've really grown to really appreciate the role and what we do and how we can actually help people move forward, be safe, and really try and watch them enjoy their lives the best they can. So that's really how I got here.
Speaker: Tell me a little bit more like what a typical day would look like for you in the EART, Elder Abuse Response Team, that you work with. So we work in an office in Calgary. We do work next to our social work partners. So we do see them every day. We get together and we talk about files um when needed, and we will make a plan for our day. We do spend a lot of time in the community. We do go out to people's houses. We're checking on them. We're doing door knocks and we do find working with seniors in particular that actually in person is more, like I would say it's more valuable. where They get to see your face, they you know you get to have conversations, the resources are available because our social workers with us, you know they're offering those things to help navigate the situation. So I do find we are busy, we're were we're out there, we're actually out quite a bit, but I do find it's it it does reap results. um so And then after that we get, what we need, whatever that is, depends on the investigation, what we're doing. um Then we come back to the office and we have lots of paperwork to do, which is everybody's worst nightmare. But we do spend a lot of time reporting, recording, doing interviews, follow up, looking for that additional evidence. So so whatever that looks like. So, yeah.
Speaker: I um love that this is a collaborative team where you're working hand in hand, police officers with social workers. We've seen that a little bit in British Columbia with police officers working hand in hand with psychiatric nurses, for example, and ah with so much overlap between the roles. It's great to see this collaborative practice happening where people you can, I guess, get the resources they need from the right person at the right time.
Speaker: So when we talk about those right resources at the right time, I'm interested in what our laws are saying about elder abuse. What does that include? What does our, say, Canadian Criminal Code actually say about elder abuse?
Speaker: So we use the definition from the World Health Organization, which states that elder abuse refers to any inaction or inaction, sorry, any action or inaction by someone in a position of trust that causes harm to an older adult. This harm can be physical, emotional, psychological, sexual, financial, or neglect, and often more than one type of this occurrence ah occurs at the same time. It can happen in the home, in the community or in care facilities and the abuser is often someone that the senior relies on, a family member, caregiver or a trusted contact.
Speaker: So the Canadian law categorizes these behaviors um within the criminal code. So we do not have a standalone elder abuse offense. Instead, we do use criminal code charges specifically related to whatever the offense may be. so An example would be theft, fraud, assault, sexual assault. There could be robbery, break and enter. um Failing to provide the necessities of life or neglect can be caregiver related and even homicide, unfortunately. Provinces also do have additional protections for seniors or for adults. um So there is protections for persons in the care, which is a government body that really oversees publicly funded care. So you're talking about people that are in care facilities.
Speaker: we do have guardianship laws so if anybody has concerns about someone's position of of trust over a senior they can make complaints through that process and we do actually deal with them and work with them a lot um and then there's pava so that is the where you can go and apply for an emergency protection order so that or like a no contact order where someone has experienced domestic violence yeah so we do try and intervene and use these laws as much as we can, obviously, to protect and like keep people safe.
Speaker: Even that there's no specific elder abuse definition law and in the criminal code, what makes these cases, i guess, defined as elder abuse as opposed to abuse or domestic violence or something like that? what What makes it unique? And do we see that flushed out in investigation or charges in a different way?
Speaker: I would say i think it's unique because as we age, we become more vulnerable. And I think that when you are in a position of trust and you have a vulnerable person, say in whatever area you could have, like say a senior is just having a hard time getting around. So they're relying on an adult child to get them groceries, to do errands, to take them places, those kinds of things. If that position becomes like they're easy to take advantage of, they're easier to take advantage of. You have, you know, people feel bad about asking people to help them, right? They don't want to have to bother them. They minimize um like the interactions they're saying, well, that wasn't a big deal.
Speaker: um When actually they assaulted them say, and I think that that's the unique piece with seniors is for one, they're very, Like they become more vulnerable as we, that's just, that's just what happens. I feel like that. I'm not even 50. I feel like it that at times, right? You feel vulnerable because you're aging and you're become more limited in your abilities.
Speaker: When you have a situation where someone unfortunately is willing or would take that step to take advantage of that, that's become, that's what elder abuse is to me. And that's what we see, right? That's the difference. And I think that it is so horrible in that way because you have,
Speaker: people that are like, I don't know what other word to use and vulnerable, but literally that's what it is, right? And it can be in so many different ways that people feel just have a harder time to stand up for themselves or say, like, they're not confident to say, well, I don't want you to do that, right? Like, or like even set up boundaries, right? We find a lot of seniors don't set up boundaries and they are willing to, yeah, be,
Speaker: put up with it, actually. I don't even know how to so to say it nicer than that, but they're willing to put up with the abuse because they don't see a way out of it. and And of course, sometimes the people who are perpetrating this abuse, it's their children.
Speaker: It's people they love and care about and who are supposed to care about them and love them too, I suppose. And like I said in the intro, I've heard it's not common like, I don't want to get anyone in trouble.
Speaker: Right. And so when How do these concerns even come forward? Because I can't imagine that, say, for example, your grandmother would have come forward to police to say, hey, I need help or this is happening, especially when it's kind of that surreptitious. It might be obvious if someone punches you in the face, but it's a lot less obvious when it's maybe financial or they're just not um bringing groceries when they should or there's those other more, guess, surreptitious things. How do these even come to your attention in the first place then?
Speaker: I would say ah mostly it's from other family members or from nurses, doctors. Like lots of people will call check on welfers. Then we start looking at what's actually going on.
Speaker: Neighbors can call. But I do think the majority of our files are like someone someone in the community, someone you know aware of something that's happening will actually report on behalf of the senior.
Speaker: We do not see a lot of seniors calling themselves, unfortunately. So we really try and work with what we have. It is, you know, it and it is challenging because when you have, say, a seniors not reaching out themselves, but someone else has done that, you know, we come in, again, as a team, very empathetic to the situation. We know this is actually, this is probably the situation. We do lots of backgrounding. We know who's who and, like, what influences they may have with a senior, those kind of things. And most of our files are adult child files.
Speaker: So there's a huge, you know, there could be 40, 50 years worth of, you know, things that have happened and gone on that we're trying to navigate through. And I think that's what makes it very challenging.
Speaker: Is it a myth that, um and maybe an adult child who didn't have a great relationship with their parents growing up, maybe their mom or dad, maybe they abused them or neglected them themselves. And so when the parent grows older, does the adult child more likely to then abuse or neglect their parent? Is that a myth or is is there actually a good connection there?
Speaker: I think if there's just dysfunction in general, it will probably continue to some degree. What we do see in our files is a lot of mental health and and addictions. So say someone, yeah, I can't say stats. I can't say that, you know, this is a thing. But what we do see is that we have, you know, say a parent that, yeah, the upbringing wasn't great. Like there are things that have happened that child may have experienced trauma or whatever that looks like as we age.
Speaker: they may have started to use something. So we have, right? We have mental health, we have, sorry, addictions that may lead to mental health or the other way around. We don't know what that looks like, but it gets complicated. As the parent ages, they can rely on this person. And I do find there can be, say, five kids in the family where the one that does have mental health issues or has addiction issues, that's the one that parent actually will have, um like, given them Power of attorney. Yes, power of attorney and PD.
Speaker: Yes. Okay. And we always we're always sitting back and wondering, like, how is this possible? how Why does a senior pick that adult child?
Speaker: And we can't really come up with an answer, but I've really thought about it over the years, and I really think it's because they feel bad to some degree. The other children are succeeding. They may have, like, education, good jobs, they're married, like, they're doing all the things they want to do and they're successful in life. And then you have this child or adult child who isn't succeeding, right? Maybe they're yeah struggling, addictions, mental health. And I feel like, I think they feel bad. I think they they take that into consideration and kind of like help, like when they give that to them, make them feel like, yeah, like they are worth that or they are, um they're not that terrible.
Speaker: I don't know. It's pretty interesting though, but it does cause a lot of a lot of grief. Generally speaking, that's what's that's the file we have. Sounds like a lot of dysfunction and potentially navigation amongst families. And I think of this when I think of child maltreatment, where you're often actually involved in like custody disputes, where one parent or caregiver might be accusing the other parent or caregiver of something. And, and you know, do you find that you've got these families? ah i don't think there's any family that is completely functional, but where you've got these dysfunctional
Speaker: families, maybe, you know, three or four different kids who all have different ideas on how their elder should be cared for. And we're dragging in the legal system with maybe not the legal system isn't the right system to be dragging in in these cases. But if they don't drag the legal system, what do they drag in then?
Speaker: Yeah, and that is a lot of our files. um and And most of the time, I would say, generally speaking, there is something to investigate. But we have to be careful too, right? When we're looking at if if a senior has capacity, And they're choosing to, you know, give their other sibling all their money because maybe they're being, yeah, maybe they have pulling the wool over their eyes and they're like, I need it for this. I need it for this. And the other sibling is like, why are you giving them all this money? Like, you know that they have an addiction, you know this, you know that like, so, but we have to be careful because some family members are looking for information, right? They want to know like, is that kid like that adult child? Do they actually have agency over parents? Like when they lose capacity? So we have to try to navigate these things. When a senior still has capacity, it is still their decision to make.
Speaker: Unless we can prove and they tell us of a criminal offense, say like intimidation, you know, maybe it is theft. Maybe they did steal their credit card and they're you know they've racked everything up, whatever. I don't know, right? but So that's what we try and figure out, but we do need the cooperation of the senior.
Speaker: When a senior loses capacity, we we don't generally aren't able to get information from them. So we have family members that are, making the complaint and they may have some evidence.
Speaker: um We can use that evidence and see if we can build on that evidence to actually prove a criminal offence. We do lots of interviewing, we write lots of warrants. We're looking at bank like bank documents and all those things to kind of try to establish what's actually happening.
Speaker: we do will we sorry We will generally always go talk to the senior even if they do not legally have capacity um to see what information theyve made they can provide because they still are maybe able to tell us something.
Speaker: So I think that that's some, I think, yeah, that is a piece that we really try to do. And I think, you know, other people may not do um because, you know, someone says someone has, but doesn't have capacity.
Speaker: We're not even going to go talk to them. And that's not always the case. So we really do take the time try and talk to everybody, if that makes sense. Absolutely. I mean, i was thinking about just because you're older, it doesn't mean that you don't have autonomy. It doesn't mean that you stop having the right to make bad decisions if you want to make bad decisions, right? When you've got that capacity. um And so I think about this also, though, sometimes with the work I do with domestic violence cases where there is,
Speaker: the the say, the victim who doesn't want charges or they're afraid of the repercussions of working with investigation teams and police.
Speaker: And then you end up in this, you know rock and a hard place because yes, they're an adult with capacity and they have the right to live at risk and to return to this relationship. But at the same time, um they're not able to move forward with anything legal for whatever fear or repercussion they might face.
Speaker: How do we handle that in cases of say our elders in the situations you're working with?
Speaker: So we do always look at, does this senior... have the ability to make the decision to live at risk, which I'm sure you do too. And I think it comes down to because we've had a lot of files to where people are calling in complaining or whatever the complaint is. And when we go, if you know, we do we can't assess capacity, obviously, but we do, you know, ask orientation questions. Is this person, you know, orientated date and time? Do you know who I am? i You know, like those kind of things. um Do they know why police were called? Do we are they able to articulate
Speaker: you know and give us any any information and i think when someone has like we've gone to houses where they can't tell me the last time they ate they don't know where their pills are they're living alone like these kind of things that that's concerning to me so not only is the senior vulnerable living in the community by themselves to some degree we have all of these other factors so in you know and then at that point we look at actually apprehending under the mental health act and conveying them to a hospital.
Speaker: So then i know, and I talked to social work there, and then I know that potentially that person. So then we have doctors looking at, you know, and nurses looking at, can this person live in the community by themselves anymore?
Speaker: And are they, do they have that ability to make the decision to do any of these things? Because I think, again, as seniors age, is there, are there family members that are looking after, you know, looking after them? Are they,
Speaker: you know noticing changes lots of people do lots of people don't right it gets to it can get to a crisis point where police are called and then we're having to apprehend it is difficult and i think um some seniors are very reluctant to leave the community want to keep living in their homes they don't want to go to the doctor they don't want their kids to do anything for them and it it gets it can get very difficult for sure and these are the challenges right but we always are always trying to in the best interest of the senior
Speaker: is to try and develop a plan to ensure that they're safe at the end of the day. That's what that's what we're trying to do.
Speaker: It doesn't sound like this dramatic confrontational process that we might see maybe in some domestic violence cases, for example. it seems a lot more nuanced, to these investigations.
Speaker: um What kinds of evidence are the most important in some of these cases that you've worked with? I would say, number one, people reporting.
Speaker: So patrol in our the way we actually ah run the unit patrol will take a call for service and they will go and do an initial, initial safety assessment. So they are the ones doing the initial door knocks and they're saying, Hey, like what's going on? Are you safe? Like all of that kind of stuff. Cause we don't know ah to what extent, like whatever the complaint is. So we're looking for that kind of thing. We will be interviewing everybody again. Can we talk to the senior? Can we not?
Speaker: um Are we looking at other family members to interview? So those would be like those collateral interviews are very important. We actually reach out to doctors too, and they're they're pretty good at letting us know what they know if they can.
Speaker: We're doing any kind of like, so we're looking for a state's neglect files. We're going looking for medical records. We're looking for video um and really assessing with the evidence that we have, what charge are we looking at? Like, is it is it something we actually can charge for?
Speaker: um Financial is like what Gama was saying, like with financial things, that is a long investigation. It takes a lot of time because we do need to write warrants and they, you know, there could be 90 days. We're waiting to get that back. So in in that, in those cases, if the financial crime has already occurred, we try and stop the financial crime would be to notify the bank.
Speaker: um We're looking at maybe actually we get a lot of files from care homes saying that their the fees aren't getting paid anymore. That's a common file. And then if it is a you know a power attorney that's um in charge the bank account and the money's just not there every few month, like what's actually happening? And you know them facilitating the um the emergency informal trusteeship so that their pensions will go straight to their care. So those kind of things we're always trying to navigate, but really it's it's reporting and it's people willing to provide statements to us.
Speaker: that's ah That's actually a big deal um and and actually providing the evidence we need or whatever evidence they do have to kind of lead us down the investigation path.
Speaker: That really speaks to the importance of the team collaboration approach ah with the social workers, all of those resources that you just spoke about as well, you know getting the the pensions going into their bank account or going into something specific instead. um When I think about teams, because we're also talking the Canadian Forensic Nurses Association, that's the podcast today. Have you had um much interaction with the local forensic nursing team ah specific to some of these cases? And if so, what role do they tend to play or where in the process might they play a role? I know Calgary is a little further ahead in some of these things when it comes to forensic nurse utilization. specifically in death investigation. But I wonder if um forensic nurses are at all involved in some of the cases you've seen.
Speaker: We do have um cases where I would say it's more for the the person that's been arrested. So we have, you know, a facility for people like, I don't know, adult children that get arrested that have extreme, like are having mental health crisis and they have a potential like they've assaulted or actually Yeah, we've had them where they've actually murdered theirs their senior parent. So they go, i would say that in that role, um they are able to provide assessments and um work within the court system. So this person's already been charged. That's only been my experience with forensic nurses in particular. um i shouldn't say that.
Speaker: We do have a lot of secured units in the hospitals in Calgary too. So when our um either the senior or the offender are on these units, we do collaborate with them also because there's a lot of information that we um we share, like say somebody, a senior is in the facility, they are experiencing and are being assessed for capacity or whatever that looks like, so they are on on this unit. um And if there are criminal charges from the adult child or whatever family member is is has happened, we notify them of the conditions. So we tell them this person is not allowed here. If they come here, if they call, you need to call 911. So we're always trying to
Speaker: um Just like, yeah, make everybody aware because that's that's in the best interest and and safety for the senior. And I think that as we as we move along, I think we're getting better at information sharing.
Speaker: A lot of people aren't comfortable with it. But I mean, at the end of the day, i would feel really bad if something happened to somebody because I didn't say something, right? I think that that's a super important piece to, um like navigating all of these things is sharing information.
Speaker: So people are aware, so they actually can help. because we can't do everything, right? And if somebody's in a facility or a hospital, they're in their care, right? And they should know. They should know actually that like the risks that are involved.
Speaker: You speak about the like sharing of information, but we also know that elder abuse is notoriously underreported, just like most abuses, of course, but elder abuse, I think, especially for all of the complicating factors we've talked about, especially with the involvement of of family. But from your perspective,
Speaker: what then are the biggest barriers for maybe the elder themselves coming forward or others coming forward? And I put myself with a professional hat on what might be the barriers for me as a professional in terms of coming forward that we need to work to break down.
Speaker: And I think it's hard because if police are asking you for a statement, they're really saying like, are you willing to attend court if they're supposed to trial? Are you willing to speak to what you observed and what you've written on this paper? That's actually a big ask. And and we understand that.
Speaker: um But it really goes down to like what I always think of it is, if that was my grandma, would I want someone to do that? Right? Like, I think that we lose that in the whole big picture of things. I understand no one wants to go to court 100%. But I think it's an important piece that people consider, like moving forward with, and being more comfortable with providing police information for that reason, right? I think that A lot of files, you know, i honestly don't go far because we don't get the evidence that we need. And that's unfortunate, right? But it it is what it is. And we try and work with what we have. But I think part of it for seniors is, you know, it's embarrassing.
Speaker: We don't want police coming to our homes. And that's one of the reasons why we don't go in uniform, generally speaking. And I think the like fear, there's always that fear of retaliation from other family members. I've i've seen families literally get torn apart over say like one, yeah, one sibling getting more money than the other, you know, like it is, it can be really hard for them.
Speaker: And I think when you're dependent, say you're dependent on an abuser, you're dependent on an adult child that, you know, has mental health and addictions. And again, you're always trying to, um i feel like they they're trying to help them all the time and they're trying, oh, they're just upset today or they drank too much or, you know, it's the, and that's embarrassing to talk about. No one wants to talk about that, which I understand that.
Speaker: I think lack of awareness for resources is a huge thing. People don't know what's out there. People don't know what they can actually get and how we can actually help them. So when we see, you know, when you go talk to somebody who's been isolated, you know, what is reliant on and on somebody that's, you know, not great. um When you tell them, well, we actually can get groceries delivered to your house and we can actually, I can, we can get you food right now.
Speaker: You know, just simple things like actually basic living issues we can actually help with cutting grass, shoveling the snow, like just it's it's insane. So when you see it on their face, they're just like, I didn't know that.
Speaker: And so that's why I think we are able to help in that way. And I think it be it allows people to become more comfortable. When people in the community is aware also of resources, I think that's a lot easier too, when they're telling people, actually, there is this, there is that. and So I think knowledge is is power for sure.
Speaker: um Cognitive impairment is is also an issue, I think, that we see. Again, as people decline, we you know anything could be happening. They could have an UTI and be really delusional or something's happening. But I mean, getting them to the hospital is important, right? Like, what are we actually dealing with?
Speaker: Sometimes when people experience dementia, which I'm sure you know all about, is like they can start experiencing paranoia and these kind of things. And so we get lots of, um you know, we get phone calls.
Speaker: the police will get phone calls because like a senior is a home and they're convinced that somebody stole their purple sweater on Tuesday. And it's a repeated call. And then so we're like, what's going on here? And then we go in and we try and help.
Speaker: um That's something that we actually do have nurses that work in our districts that will go out and assist with files like that. And actually, well, I've seen lots of success with that too. They get them to hospital or get them into care and not only are you reducing the calls for service, but they're not, they're not living in a state of fright.
Speaker: Like they live in this panic and this fear. And it's like, it's awful. It's awful to see actually. um But I think when, but it's super hard. So you either have the extreme, you have people that are paranoid, they don't want to talk to anybody or paranoid, they want to tell everybody, right? Like it's, it's very extreme that we see. um But yeah, I think that that's,
Speaker: that's really what we deal with. I think those are major, I think the major barriers for sure.
Speaker: Sounds like just because someone reaches out maybe for a wellness check or the EART team gets involved, it doesn't necessarily mean that we're talking charges and legal stuff and people going to jail and all of those. It sounds a lot like the social work role here where let's arrange to get your snow shoveled and your groceries delivered, or let's arrange for a health checkup to see, you know, like if you have a UTI and that's causing some cognitive impairment or something, and that it doesn't necessarily mean that we're getting people in trouble.
Speaker: No, it doesn't for sure. It's a lot of preventative. We'd like to see, again, i don't want to see, don't want to have to charge somebody because the police weren't called. The police didn't, you know what i mean? Or there wasn't any resources offered there. You know, they don't, again, they don't know. They're not talking to people. They're not asking, maybe not necessarily asking. And I think culturally, You know, in different cultures, that's a no-no, right? You do not go outside of your culture.
Speaker: You don't ask for help, right? So I think that i should that is one other thing, too, we do see, actually. um And that is it that is a huge cultural barrier, though, that we're trying to overcome, too. When I think about, like, when we talk about children, we talk about it takes a village to raise children. But I think it also takes a village to care for our elders as well, like you said. Agreed. I know that we would shovel our elderly neighbors sidewalk the once time a year that Vancouver snows, but and that neighbors do take care of each other when we are connected. And that really speaks to the importance of those community connections of neighbors recognizing when something's off, like in our ni introduction there, or recognizing that a senior may need a little help, like, hey, can I pick you up milk or something? And it sounds like you're having to almost fill in some of those gaps.
Speaker: for those maybe lost community connections. I do. And I think that that is just where we're going. um We know, generally speaking, people don't know their neighbors. You know, people aren't having those conversations. And I think COVID didn't help, obviously. um And we did see a huge uptick even in um scams and frauds just across the board because people are isolated.
Speaker: they're They're not having conversations with people as much and they're not going out in the community. um So we did see, yeah, it it it has gotten worse. Right. And I think that that is a huge piece talking to people just saying, hey, can I help you? Do you need something like it is? And I think that's that's where we see um it does happen, though. We do get calls from neighbors. And I think that and that that's important. Right. We do want it. We do want those calls. We want to make sure that people are OK.
Speaker: So if I'm worried about an older adult in my life, or maybe one of our listeners is worried, what should they do or look for? What's the safest first step? And maybe more importantly, what should they not do? i guess it depends on what they're observing.
Speaker: If there is, say, screaming and yelling, i would call police. I would be calling 911. Again, I don't know how comfortable people are. But like doing a door knock on your own might not be something, I mean, because you just don't know what you're going to find. But i do I do think having, you know, just awareness of who your neighbors are, taking note of things, just being aware, right? Looking around, you know, have you seen the neighbor for a while? Like, do you do you see anything changes, like in changes, if anything? A recent, I would say, if there's a recent move in of somebody, even for nursing too, like when people come, to hospital, if there's like a recent change in living environment where say an adult child has moved in, that's, it can be good and it can be bad, right? Like um we love it when home care is involved because we can always call home care. Do they have any concerns? Actually, there some of the people that report to us too, just in general. But that is, because then we see like is is somebody, i don't know how, like if you're just a neighbor, if you would notice that, but like
Speaker: You know, we have we have files where there can be a senior owns the home, adult child moves in, then there's like, you know, 10 people coming to the door a day where that wasn't happening before. You know, the yard's not being taken care of, you don't see the senior. Like you could have you could have drug dealing going on in that house now, right? Like that's just to that's a terrible thing, right? um I just think being aware and looking for big changes is something that I think is not hard to do. and And it isn't going to put you out any, right? You're not, you're not putting yourself out there. um
Speaker: But at developing, developing relationships with your neighbors, or the senior down the street, whatever that looks like, I think that you're in a way better position. um And they may come to you and say, hey, I have this problem, right? And that's what we're, that's what I think community is.
Speaker: And that's, I think that's an important step. I think, like, again, when people see things that are out of the ordinary, very drastic, screaming, yelling,
Speaker: just call the police. At the end of the day, I think that's the safest thing to do. so our message today is get to know your neighbours. Let's go back to creating that village again.
Speaker: As we wrap up here, Tracy, what's your message? I guess my message was get to know your neighbours, but what what's your message? What do you want to leave us with today? What gives you hope in the work that you're doing?
Speaker: I would say... that like even even to to seniors, like just in general is like elder abuse is widespread.
Speaker: There are 7.75 million canadian ah Canadians that are considered seniors in Canada. So I mean that Canadians. um So that's a huge number, 20%.
Speaker: Actually just a second, I gotta to find my paper because I can't remember, but this is, i thought this isn' really interesting. So in 2024, there were 7,622 reported senior victims in Canada. That's a lot in one year.
Speaker: And then gent there's actually, so family violence against seniors has increased increased by 49% since 2018 also. So we we're seeing a ah massive increase. um People are like, there's there's a lot of seniors. We all know that um to what level they are, you know, functioning the community obviously varies.
Speaker: We have, So we have a lot, this is actually, yeah, Canadian statistics too, but I think being comfortable with being abused and being comfortable with taking advantage of, I don't, like, I i struggle with that. I think people shouldn't um put up with this stuff. I do, um like, I do think things are preventable if people are willing to ask for help.
Speaker: um I do think, like, people deserve to be safe, respected, and heard. um And if something doesn't feel right to you or if something doesn't feel right, say, as a senior to themselves, these things aren't your fault. And people need to know that they're not alone. And I think, again, like this piece of thinking about the community, because people do feel alone, right? And I think we need to do better with that.
Speaker: um There are people to help. Whoever that person is for you, I think it's important to ask for help if if something feels off. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that.
Speaker: And again, calling the police isn't some big scary thing. We are here to help. We will um we will come in and do what we need to do, i would right, like to to keep people safe. But that means, say a senior is, you know, has physical injuries, that's the only time that we may consider charging, even though the senior doesn't want to.
Speaker: That is something to be aware of. Like, I think that that's, we we have no tolerance for that. And I think, People shouldn't either. Tracy, thank you for your insight today, your candor, and your commitment to supporting older adults with dignity. And to everyone who's tuning in, let's keep learning, keep paying attention, and keep showing up for the people in your community who may not be able to speak up for themselves. What we've learned today is that abuse of elders is not just a niche issue.
Speaker: It's not rare, perhaps even it's increasing, in both acknowledging that it's happening and then recognizing it. It's not something that only happens somewhere else. It's happening in apartment buildings, in suburban homes, in long-term care facilities, and in families who never imagined that they'd be touched by it.
Speaker: What we heard today is that these cases are complex, emotionally, legally, and relationally complex, and that police officers, forensic nurses, social workers, and community members in general all hold different pieces of these puzzles. There's no single system that can solve these problems alone.
Speaker: But here's the part that matters. Most cases come to light because one person noticed something and they chose not to look away. A neighbor, maybe a bank teller, a nurse, a home care worker, a family friend, someone who trusted that their instincts were enough to ask questions and maybe to make a call.
Speaker: If you're listening and you're worried about an older adult in your life, you don't need to have proof. You don't need to be certain. You just need to care enough to reach out to someone who can help. Safety starts with connection and connection starts with noticing.
Speaker: Today's conversation doesn't end here. It continues in our homes, in our workplaces, in our clinics, in our neighborhoods. And every time we talk about elder abuse openly, we make it just a little harder for it to stay hidden.
Speaker: If you've recently been hurt or assaulted, stalked or harassed, please seek medical care at your closest emergency department. Connect with support services in your community or your local police.
Speaker: I'm forensic nurse practitioner Hannah Varto, and this is Beyond the Rape Kit, Canada's Forensic Frontline, a podcast by the Canadian Forensic Nurses Association. Thank you for listening.
Speaker: Take care of yourselves and each other. Stay safe.
