The mistreatment of elderly people has become increasingly serious. Among other problems, there has been a conspicuous increase in the number of such cases at nursing care facilities, where specialized care should be provided. There is a pressing need to step up measures to deal with the problem.
The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry has released the results of a survey conducted in fiscal 2016 regarding the abuse of elderly persons.
Of all incidents handled by local governments, the number of cases involving the abuse of elderly people by nursing care personnel stood at 452, marking a three-fold increase over a five-year period. They included instances in which multiple cases of elder abuse occurred at a single facility, and victims of the abuse totaled 870 people.
Cases involving acts of violence and other forms of physical abuse accounted for more than 60 percent of the total, the highest among the patterns of mistreatment. This was followed by cases of psychological abuse, including the use of abusive language as well as the dereliction of nursing care.
By types of facilities, homes in charge of providing around-the-clock care, known as tokuyo, and fee-charging homes accounted for more than half of the total. One-fourth of the operators of facilities in which elderly abuse cases occurred had been subject to some kind of administrative guidance.
Abuse of elderly people can threaten the safety of aged people requiring nursing care, their sense of security and profoundly hurt their dignity. A rise in social awareness about elder abuse is one reason why the problem has come to light. Nonetheless, the situation cannot be overlooked.
There has been a series of serious cases in recent months. In February, it was revealed that a number of residents in a tokuyo home in Kyoto Prefecture had suffered broken bones and other unnatural injuries. The incident involving one of these residents was acknowledged to be a case of mistreatment.
Improve working conditions
Another case concerned a home for elderly people in Nakano Ward, Tokyo,where in November, a former employee of the facility was arrested on suspicion of drowning a resident by forcing his face into a bathtub. There were also three cases in which residents of an elderly people's home in Kawasaki fell to their deaths in 2014. A death sentence was handed down on a former employee charged with their murder.
The frequent incidence of elder abuse cases could increase distrust in homes for elderly people and shake trust in the government-run nursing care insurance system.
The serious difficulty in securing nursing care personnel has been cited as a factor behind the elder abuse problem. Nursing care workers' constant and excessive workload is a heavy burden. An increasing number of people receiving services at nursing care facilities have difficulty communicating with others due to dementia and other reasons. However, it is also a fact that there is no choice but to rely on personnel with little knowledge and experience in this field.
Regarding factors for the abuse of elderly people by nursing care personnel, the latest survey shows that close to 70 percent of such cases are attributable to workers' education, knowledge, nursing care skills and other problems. Another noticeable factor cited by the survey was stress felt by such personnel and problems with their emotional control.
It is indispensable to step up measures aimed at securing personnel, such as an improvement in their working conditions, and also to improve the quality of staff training related to nursing care skills, knowledge and stress control.
Efforts should also be made to reduce the workload of nursing care workers. They could include increasing the number of people in charge of assisting in supplementary work, such as cleaning facilities and serving food. The efficiency of work could be improved through the utilization of information technology. The central and local governments should properly support these measures.
There were 16,384 cases involving the abuse of elderly people by their families and others, a slight increase from a preceding fiscal year. In many cases, fatigue due to nursing care was a factor behind the situation. It is important to prevent people who look after their relatives from becoming fatigued and isolated through such measures as promoting the use of nursing care services and creating places to relax.
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, March 25, 2018)
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