JAPAN: Campaign Against Abuse of the Elderly Goes Local

TOKYO, Japan (The Japan Times - Kyodo News), October 13, 2007: Japan's welfare ministry has ordered municipalities to strengthen cooperation with police and communities in a bid to cope with cases of mistreatment of elderly people by family members. Fiscal 2006 saw 12,575 cases of abuse of people aged 65 or older by family members reported to authorities, according to the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry. The ministry urged the local governments to set up special consultation centers to deal with abuse cases and to make sure residents know the centers are available in emergencies, ministry officials said Thursday. Because about 40 percent of the reported abuse victims have symptoms of dementia, the ministry stressed the need to inform family members and residents in general of the proper ways of communicating with such patients, according to the officials. The municipalities were also ordered to remind care workers of their obligations to report abuses to authorities. The law against abusing the elderly obliges all workers engaged in home nursing-care operations to be on the looking for family members mistreating seniors at an early stage and inform their municipalities. The ministry also called on the local governments to ensure space at nursing homes and hospitals so they can temporarily accommodate elderly people who need to be separated from family members. The ministry also said there is a need to secure workers who are well versed in the situation surrounding abuse of the elderly and the protection of their rights. The Japan Times (C) All rights reserved