New
team targets elder abuse
FLINT
THE
FLINT JOURNAL FIRST EDITION
Friday,
November 30, 2007
By
Shena Abercrombie
sabercrombie@flintjournal.com
• 810.766.6307
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Team
leader
Diane
Nimms was appointed director of the new Elder Abuse and
Exploitation Prevention Team, which will be housed at the Genesys
Center for Gerontology at the West Flint Campus, 3919 Beecher Road.
Details: (810) 762-4550.
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FLINT
- Linda Moore can't spot all the problems of patrons at the busy
Carman-Ainsworth Senior Center in Flint Township, where she serves as
director.
That's
where a new team to protect the elderly from abuse comes in.
"Here,
everybody knows everybody, we're like a family," said Moore, a
20-year veteran of senior centers. "If I see a senior isn't
doing well, (many times) I've picked up the phone and called other
members of the family. (But) a lot of times, we at the center don't
see the financial end of it."
Predators
who physically abuse seniors or exploit them financially are on a new
hit list: that of the recently formed Elder Abuse and Exploitation
Prevention Team.
The
team is a collaborative effort among the Genesee County Sheriff's
Department, Genesee County Probate Court, the Genesee County
Prosecutor's office and the Center for Gerontology.
Members
of the month-old team met Thursday to announce a $700,000 grant from
the Genesee County Metropolitan Planning Commission Senior Services
Millage.
Genesee
County Sheriff Robert J. Pickell said the group's focus will be
prosecution as well as prevention.
"There's
no model for this anywhere else in the state," Pickell said.
"This is really new. In very few states do they have such a
collaborative effort."
Pickell
said the team will conduct in-depth investigations into nursing homes
and caregiver facilities, as well as conducting background checks for
those who petition the court for legal guardian status of elderly
residents - even family members.
"Oh,
that's a wonderful idea," Moore said. "That just made my
day. I've been fortunate here to have seniors with families who are
very good to them, but seniors are very trusting."
Already,
the team has investigated 17 cases of suspected elder abuse, and
individuals have been charged in five cases, officials said at a news
conference.
More
are expected.
In
2006, there were 80,000 victims of abuse over the age of 60 in the
state and 390 from Genesee County, said Pickell during the news
conference.
Genesee
Probate Judge Jennie E. Barkey pointed to the recent high-profile
case of Shannon H. Pitcher, a former attorney who was sentenced to
prison this month for embezzling $288,137 from 27 of her clients.
"I
would like to say that was an isolated incident, but it's not. Now we
have a mechanism in place that also has a preventative
component," Barkey said.
Local
senior advocates are optimistic about its impact.
"I
think if people know there is somebody watching and there's going to
be a follow up and potential legal action, they'd be less likely to
do that," said Kathryn Boles, executive director for the Valley
Area Agency on Aging. "From our perspective, these cases are
growing. My case managers see cases that involve elder abuse on a
daily basis."
Currently,
agencies such as VAAA and local senior centers such as the
Carman-Ainsworth center in Flint Township and the Clio Area Senior
Center in Vienna Township, have reported cases of suspected elder
abuse to the Department of Health and Human Services Adult Protective
Services unit.
"Our
center has been used as a site for the agency to interview clients
away from family members," said Ann Anderson, CASC director.
"It's an excellent idea. It'll be interesting to see how this
new program works."
She
fears, however, that some cases will continue to slip through the
cracks.
"I
do think elderly people are taken advantage of more often than we
know, but most occur in households where the family members do not go
through the courts to petition for legal guardianship," Anderson
said.
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