Elder Abuse -- Part Three -- Target Hardening and Other Thoughts

Certainly yesterday's blog post was informative, but reactive.  Lets try to get proactive here with this issue.  Today, I will talk a bit about target hardening and how it can help prevent elder abuse.  

What the heck is target hardening?

From Wikipedia...  Target hardening, also referred to simply as hardening when made clear by the context, is a term used by police officers, those working in security, and the military referring to the strengthening of the security of a building or installation in order to protect it in the event of attack or reduce the risk of theft.[1][2] It is believed that a "strong, visible defense will deter or delay an attack".[3]
In terms of business and home security, target hardening[4] is one of the suite of protective measures that are included in crime prevention through environmental design[5]. This can include ensuring all doors and windows are sourced and fitted in such a way that they can resist forcible and surreptitious intruder attack, adding hard barriers and landscapes that resist vehicle and pedestrian intrusion, adding fences, walls and hostile planting[6].

Well, lets think about our seniors/elderly as targets for abuse.  We remember that we are trying to prevent some kind of neglect or physical, mental or financial abuse.  How could we utilize the practice of "target hardening" to make the senior/elderly person a "harder thing to target?"  Here are some ideas (obviously, these are my thoughts only, I am not a health care professional, etc.).

• With physical abuse, maybe we could talk to the senior about the possibility that they will be physically attacked or abused by someone, including someone that cares for them.  The senior will probably not be able to defend themselves, so we should help them defend themselves by taking proactive measures to deter potential abusers!  Security cameras throughout the living area, maybe?  Limiting access to the living place of the senior to close friends and family and those who are pre-screened, perhaps?  Discussions of what constitutes physical abuse and how to stop it before it starts?  With two young children in our household, you can bet that my wife and I pre-screen everyone who can get into the house, and do background checks on all caregivers.  Certainly seniors are not children, but why shouldnt we use some of the same techniques that frustrate the abuse of children on potential abusers of the elderly?
• With mental abuse, it would probably be important to monitor the mental condition of the senior, and perhaps get a baseline psychological exam done every year by a mental health professional.  I've been hearing that people should all get a baseline mental health exam done on their 50th birthday, for use later in life to measure changes/declines/etc.  It might be worth a doctor's appointment to discuss this idea.  We could probably do more to encourage positive personal associations in the elder's life, and help them steer clear of mind-numbing personal interactions that might lead to later mental abuse.  Again, pre-screening of people in caretaker roles is likely key here too.  I welcome thoughts on this issue.
• With neglect, I will go back to a bit of advice from my mom: "to have friends, you have to be a friend."  We need to encourage our seniors to not fall victim to neglect by helping them get out into the community and be involved.  Senior status does not have to mean the gradual decline of one's social life.  I could write a novel on all the volunteer opportunities that are going lacking due to not having any volunteers.  The elder person might not be able to drive but we can help connect them with the outside world with some education from public transit avocates in our communites!  Maybe someone can teach them how to ride the bus, light rail, or learn to use ride share apps.  No reason to stay home alone when there are so many things to do out there.   A bit of education goes a long way in helping stave off neglect.
• I did not forget financial abuse.  I'll devote tomorrow's blog to this topic exclusively.
  

Anything elderly or seniors can do to harden themselves as a target will certainly be beneficial in preventing these abuse issues.  We all should probably do more to help them prevent themselves from being abused, right?