Older people not always reporting abuse

Annually, 15 June marks World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, a day NSW Ageing and Disability Commissioner Jeff Smith said highlighted the risk of abuse for older people and acted as a call to action to build safer communities.

According to data collected by the ADC between July 2019 and June 2024, the most commonly reported type of alleged abuse was psychological (39 per cent) followed by financial abuse (29 per cent). Two-thirds of reports related to older women (67 per cent). There was also a 108 per cent increase in reports made to the ADC over the five years of data collection.

In Victoria, research conducted by Better Place Australia shows many older people would not seek help if abused, and the not-for-profit organisation is hoping for systemic change in elder abuse intervention.

The community-focused advocacy group surveyed 539 older Victorians, and found one in five were unlikely to seek support if mistreated by a family member or a carer. For those who indicated they would seek help, they said they would first turn to other family members, a friend, their GP or a medical professional before a hotline or police.  

It was noted that men were more likely to report to police, largely due to having fewer social connections and the social conditioning experienced by women to keep family matters private.

Better Place Australia is calling on the government to strengthen investment in early intervention and local community responses to elder abuse, complementing legal pathways with broader support services that reflect older people’s preferences and lived realities.

The current elder abuse response system doesn’t always align with what older people want, or reflect their lived realities, said Dr Sarah Marko, who led the research.

“Legal and police pathways have an important place, but they shouldn’t be the default response. Older people want safe, accessible and empowering services that give them real options and respect their right to choose how to respond,” she said.

To raise awareness on the prevalence of elder abuse, Seniors Rights Victoria, COTA Victoria and Safe and Equal have also launched a new partnership to train Orange Door – a family violence support network – and family violence case workers in recognising the signs.

Funded by the Victorian Government’s department of families, fairness and housing, the two-year collaboration will deliver tailored training and resources to 1,400 Orange Door employees.

Seniors Rights Victoria and COTA Victoria chief executive officer Ben Rogers said elder abuse was often an overlooked form of family violence and those working in the sector needed tools to intervene.

“This program will be a key part in ensuring that the family violence system can meet the needs of elder abuse victim survivors,” Mr Rogers said.

“We’re extremely excited to partner with Safe and Equal and pool our expertise to provide better outcomes for specialists and the older Victorians they support, and to have it announced as we gather to observe World Elder Abuse Awareness Day 2025,” he added.

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