June recognized as Elder and Dependent Adult Abuse Awareness Month

The board of supervisors has adopted a proclamation to recognize elder abuse for the month of June in Imperial County.

News 11’s sought help on how to spot signs of abuse and how report it.

In California, according to Adult Protective Services, there are as many as 10,000 reports of elder and dependent adult abuse per month, and that number is growing.

“Elder abuse can take form in different in different ways,” said Rosyo Ramirez, Program Manager at Adult Protective Services in Imperial County.

Ramirez says there are many forms of abuse, some examples are physical abuse, neglect by others, sexual abuse, financial abuse and mental abuse.

“There is also what is known as self-neglect, and so sometimes within the elder or the dependent adult’s community it is possible that they cause harm to themselves,” explained Ramirez.

Whether intentional or not, signs of abuse should be reported. People are asked to report abuse to the local police department and local agencies available such as adult protective services.

“There’s a 24 hour hotline that is always available and that number is 760-337-7878. A lot of people don’t know that there are services available, a lot of people are ashamed of their current situation and so they are afraid to report or they are embarrassed to report,” added Ramirez.

In California adult victims have the right to decline services even if those services may help resolve and abusive situation.

“Our cases have increased about 66% and we’ve doubled, more than doubled our cases as we’ve been receiving. We want people to reach out, not be embarrassed, not feel ashamed because it’s okay, it happens. We want people to live in dignity and with respect, no matter their situation,” said Ramirez.

Elderly abuse is considered a crime, those caught in the act can face up to four years behind bars. For more information on how to report abuse you can head to http://www.cwda.org/featured-content/elder-and-dependent-adult-abuse-awareness-campaign-toolkit-launched