Challenge of Reporting Elder Abuse

It is difficult and confusing for the average individual to find out how to report suspected Elder Abuse because no easy-to-locate Internet source for “how to report Elder Abuse” could be located. Additionally published, printed documents are not widely distributed or available. Also, no public service advertising campaigns regarding Elder Abuse awareness came to the attention of the CGJ during the term from July 2018 to May 2019.

The term “Elder Abuse” is not a term that people are commonly aware of while “Child Abuse” and “Domestic Violence” are recognized, well known terms.

Where telephone numbers for reporting elder Abuse can be located on websites and in published documents, multiple telephone numbers relating to Elder Abuse are often provided. Encountering multiple numbers and having to determine which number to call, simply put, is unnecessarily confusing.

Information on Elder Abuse located on Internet searches24 and in County or City of Los Angeles publications is often found to be confusing. Cross referencing several sources, e.g. a website and a printed publication, is found to be confusing as multiple, alternative 24 As websites are subject to being changed, while websites were searched, referencing them will not necessarily provide the same information or layout/appearance that the CGJ encountered during its inquiries. 2018-2019 LOS ANGELES COUNTY CIVIL GRAND JURY FINAL REPORT THE CHALLENGE OF REPORTING ELDER ABUSE 5 - 9 terms and descriptions are encountered. In particular, it is not easy to locate the correct toll free telephone number for reporting Elder Abuse on the WDACS website.25 There is an array of Elder Abuse topics posted in ‘boxes’ for reporting abuse, of which seven relate to elder abuse but only one of the seven options provides the correct number – (877) 477- 3646 – for the 24-Hour, Adult Protective Services Abuse Hotline. This number is not visible until one clicks on the appropriate option!

County websites are not always consistent and are difficult to navigate, and at least one broken link led to a “404 Web page not found” error notification on the Workforce Development, Aging & Community Services (WDACS) website26 making the County web site search to be of no help.

Clicking on the “Report Elder Abuse” button on the WDACS website27 brings up a form intended for use by trained, mandated reporters. This form is not user-friendly to the general public as only those who have received training will understand the purpose of many of the data entry fields. The form is not intuitive.

Adult Protective Services (APS) is the sole county agency that receives Elder Abuse reports.28 APS receives reports of Elder Abuse from mandated reporters and from the general public. Mandated reporters include Law Enforcement, Social Workers, Healthcare and Medical workers, Fire department employees, the Long Term Care Ombudsman and others.29

The information published on Los Angeles County websites about Adult Protective Services and how to report Elder Abuse is almost entirely oriented toward mandated reporters making the WDACS and APS websites unhelpful for the general public.

In County and City publications that we located, Elder Abuse reporting and Adult Protective Services information is just one of many topics included in the document causing Elder Abuse to lack visibility with Adult Protective Services in particular lacking visibility. The CGJ reviewed two near-identical publications that provide extensive information on services for the Elderly and for their families that are available from the Agencies on Aging for the City and County – "Elder Abuse: Prevention through Prosecution" and “Elder Justice: A Resource Guide for Action”. One of these six-page directories, shown on the next page, includes the front cover main headline, "Stop Elder Abuse". 25 https://wdacs.lacounty.gov/programs/aps/whenwhere-to-report-abuse/ 26 https://www.lacounty.gov/report/ the link posted as “I want to report… Elder Abuse (Adult Protective Services)” - verified 5-3-2019. 27 https://wdacs.lacounty.gov/ 28 https://wdacs.lacounty.gov/programs/aps/ 29 “Information For Mandated Reporters”, http://www.cdss.ca.gov/inforesources/Adult-Protective-Services 2018-2019 LOS ANGELES COUNTY CIVIL GRAND JURY FINAL REPORT THE CHALLENGE OF REPORTING ELDER ABUSE 5 - 10 The following two graphics show the inside page which provides the following information about ‘who to call’ from each of these two brochures: • Dial 911 to report elder abuse or neglect to the Police NOW if the abuse is immediate and life-threatening. • Elder Abuse Hotline at 1-877-477-3646 or 1-800-992-1660 to report allegations of abuse when you are unsure on where to call. • Adult Protective Services, County of Los Angeles, 1-888-202-4248 if you suspect elder abuse in the community. Call 213-351-5401 if you are outside of Los Angeles County. • Long-Term Care Ombudsman, at WISE & Healthy Aging 1-800-334-9473 and report suspected abuse occurring at board and care homes, nursing homes and assisted living facilities in LA County. • Statewide Ombudsman after-hours crisis line: 1-800-231-4024. * The entry referencing ‘Dial 911’ included above does not appear in the on-line version shown on this page but is included in hard copy versions of the brochure. 2018-2019 LOS ANGELES COUNTY CIVIL GRAND JURY FINAL REPORT THE CHALLENGE OF REPORTING ELDER ABUSE 5 - 11 2018-2019 LOS ANGELES COUNTY CIVIL GRAND JURY FINAL REPORT THE CHALLENGE OF REPORTING ELDER ABUSE 5 -

The information line referencing Adult Protective Services in both documents providing multiple telephone numbers is confusing; the 1-877-477-3646 number alone is adequate.

These excellent documents provide helpful information about the various types of Elder Abuse. However, both have been distributed on a very limited basis because of printing costs, the expenses of mailing and, the CGJ was advised, a limited budget.

Although it is not at all easy to find them unless one has the URL, on-line versions of these two documents exist and can be located online at: http://assets.lapdonline.org/assets/pdf/Elder_Abuse_BRO_for_Law_Enforcement_6-5-15.pdf and http://www.wiseandhealthyaging.org/cms/pdf/Elder%20Justice%20Resource%20Guide%202018% 20web.pdf. 2018-2019 LOS ANGELES COUNTY CIVIL GRAND JURY FINAL REPORT THE CHALLENGE OF REPORTING ELDER ABUSE 5 -

The statistical information provided by APS showed the number of reported incidents of Elder Abuse that warranted an investigation. The number of reported incidents of Elder Abuse that warranted an investigation rose from 41,220 in 2014-2015 to 56,065 in 2017- 2018, a growth of 38.3% over a 4 year period. During this time period APS staffing increased minimally. The average number of new cases per social worker per year has risen from 317 in 2014-15 to 356 in 2017-18. As stated in the earlier section on ‘Suspected Elder Abuse Calls Reported’ (on page 5-8), the average number of new cases per social worker per year has risen by 12%.