View Policy Brief

11/2024

Elder abuse is a widespread issue and rural communities face unique risks to preventing, identifying, and addressing it. This brief shares results from key informant interviews with representatives of rural Triads (multi-sectoral community-based partnerships that address elder abuse) to illuminate rural-specific dimensions of this issue.

Key Findings:

• Challenges to preventing and addressing elder abuse included themes related to education and awareness, outreach and engagement, limited resources and services, reporting issues, isolation, stigma, and systemic barriers.
• Criteria for successful interventions from rural Triads include the integration of elder abuse programming, community collaboration, older adult engagement, and elder abuse infrastructure.

University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center

Megan Lahr, Alyssa Fritz, Ingrid Jacobson, Marti DeLiema, Carrie Henning-Smith

Aging, Health disparities and health equity, Public health, Social determinants of health, Violence and abuse