CHAPEL HILL – UNC-Chapel Hill faculty
member Meredith Smith works with North Carolina’s clerks of superior
court. In their judicial role appointing and overseeing guardians for
older adults who lack capacity, clerks were encountering a three-headed
monster related to the abuse and exploitation of older adults.
Among them: guardianship filings to stop abuse, guardians themselves
committing the abuse and guardians asking for resources and referrals
related to incapacitated older adults in crisis.
On the other side of town, faculty member Aimee Wall, in the course
of her work with county social services agencies, heard echoes of the
same from directors, staff and attorneys.
Smith and Wall quickly recognized that problems in each of the
domains they served were having a ripple effect through communities
across the state.
Together with the project’s funders and School staff, Smith and Wall
developed resources and an online platform designed to connect and support public officials on the front lines of the fight against elder abuse.
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| Aimee Wall and Meredith Smith. (UNC-CH photo) |
In addition to the manual, the project includes a resource-rich
website, forums to connect officials, a map of other North Carolina
professionals working in the field of elder protection and tools to help
counties create and sustain multidisciplinary teams (MDTs).
Resources have already started to roll out to communities this
summer, including the launch of a manual in print and digital formats.
This month, the project launched with a free webinar,
“Building Elder Protection Networks in North Carolina.”
Smith and Wall presented an overview of the legal framework of North
Carolina’s network and lead a discussion with individuals from across
the state who are doing this work in various ways.
The webinar will also introduce
a new web-based tool,
the North Carolina Elder Protection Network. The site will connect,
inform and support MDTs and professionals working in aging and adult
services across the state. Features will include a discussion forum for
professionals to share questions and information, a digital map and
directory of MDTs and professionals working in this area and a resource
library of content.
Elder abuse is not unique
The issues Smith and Wall observed are not unique to North Carolina.
As the population of adults over the age of 65 surges in the United
States, states and communities find themselves ill-equipped to deal with
the growing problem of elder abuse. At least 10% of older Americans are
victims of abuse each year, including physical abuse, financial fraud,
scams, caregiver neglect, psychological abuse and sexual abuse.
The impacts are staggering: anywhere from $2.9 billion to $36.5
billion is lost annually in financial exploitation and fraud schemes
targeting older adults. Victims of elder abuse are twice as likely to
die prematurely compared to those who have not been mistreated. There is
no single set of laws to curb elder abuse, and no one agency exists to
combat the problem.
Some communities have established MDTs to help combat elder abuse in
North Carolina. An MDT is a collaborative effort bound by a common
purpose — in this case, to protect older adults from abuse and stop the
perpetrators of said abuse. An elder abuse MDT may consist of judges,
clerks, APS social workers and directors, physicians, law enforcement,
prosecutors, psychologists or victim’s advocates. No two MDTs are the
same; each exists to serve the unique goals and vision of the group and
its community.
MDTs might exist to review cases of abuse in the community, or they
might focus on systemic change to stop the problem. A well-functioning
MDT is much like a relay race. When a “baton” is handed off, it isn’t
dropped. Instead, it goes to the next runner, who knows where they are
going and can transport it there safely.
Smith and Wall worked closely with faculty member Margaret
Henderson to guide a group of North Carolina communities in the creation
of their own MDTs in September 2019 at their first Elder Protection
workshop. Seven counties — Robeson, Guilford, Iredell, Johnston,
Buncombe, Mecklenburg and Hyde — arrived at the UNC-Chapel Hill campus
for an immersive two-day experience designed to give them the building
blocks to create a successful, sustainable MDT.
The concept was simple: The School cannot provide a community with an
MDT, but it can give each group the space and the framework to create
these teams. Counties were selected by application, ensuring a diverse
mix based on population, geography and demography.
“The amount of energy and enthusiasm that people brought was just
spectacular,” Wall said. “They were here, they were in it, and they were
totally committed to taking some kind of next step. That was really
exciting to see.”
After selecting their team theme songs and names (including
“Guardians of Guilford County,” “The Elder Crusaders” and the “Queen
City Scam Squad”), each MDT set out to write its own vision and mission
statement. They also presented their particular challenges and
identified other groups that needed to come to the table to make change.
Groups shared questions with their fellow attendees, allowing for
advice and connectivity over shared experiences.
The workshop was a microcosm of the work this faculty team is hoping
to achieve on a broader level. Groups in attendance connected,
commiserated, shared problems and gained new insights from their
counterparts from other counties.
“We’re supporting them as they go through that group formation
process and hit some of the road bumps,” Smith said. “We want to try to
ensure long-term success of the teams and their ability to respond to
these cases.”
While MDTs are an emerging best practice in the elder protection
realm, not every county has the capacity to build a team from scratch.
Smith and Wall’s free online resources are designed to be used by
officials in any community or situation.
“If you have an MDT or you want to create one, this will be helpful,”
Wall said. “But even if you’re operating under standard procedures in
your county, the hope is that these resources will make it easier for
you.”
Henderson, Smith and Wall hope to have the opportunity to assist more
counties with the formation and support of MDTs including the
possibility of hosting workshops around the state. The School will also
provide ongoing support to existing MDTs, with the ultimate goal of
creating communities that are connected and responsive to the needs of
their senior populations.
The team is excited for the project’s future — and looks forward to seeing counties put their resources and MDTs into action.
“This is just enough in order to facilitate the partnerships and the
connections,” Wall said. “The hard work is up to them, because they have
to make those connections and make them work on a day-to-day basis.”
Full Article & Source:
UNC-Chapel Hill team develops digital tool to fight elder abuse
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