A Government minister has called for a new culture in the care system to tackle abuse and neglect of the elderly.
Care services minister Ivan Lewis said society needed to be as outraged by the abuse of an old person as by the abuse of a child.
His comments came as a new telephone hotline was launched in conjunction with care homes themselves to enable people to complain without worrying about repurcussions. It is intended to give elderly residents, families, friends and care workers a safe and protected way of speaking out, knowing there is an independent charity overseeing the process.
The phoneline involves a number of organisations including the major elder abuse charity in the UK, Action on Elder Abuse, the police, and the biggest care provider in the UK, Southern Cross Healthcare, which has 710 care homes in the UK. It will be run by Essex County Council.
At present nearly a quarter of calls to the charity Action on Elder Abuse are about abuse in care homes, where only 4.9 per cent of older people live. Many do not report abuse because of fear of eviction or retribution, and care staff do not report it through fear of losing their jobs.
The phone line will serve 1,014 people in Essex initially, but there are hopes of similar schemes nationwide. Information received by the helpline will be passed to the relevant authorities who will agree on a timeframe for response and an independent scrutiny of the situation.
Gary Fitzgerald, chief executive of Action on Elder Abuse, said: "The care home sector has received a lot of criticism in recent years for failing to respond to abuse issues, but the care providers involved in this project have taken a major positive step in providing a platform for people to voice concerns about abuse and bad practice, as well as ensuring that these concerns will be acted upon and taken seriously.
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What is Elder Abuse?We define elder abuse as: 'A single or repeated act or lack of appropriate action, occurring within any relationship where there is an expectation of trust, which causes harm or distress to an older person'.
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"They are to be strongly congratulated for their integrity and commitment to a policy of zero tolerance to abuse, and for taking steps to ensure that this policy is a reality.
"While this is initially a pilot project, its impact should be of interest to the whole care sector, to statutory services, to regulators and most importantly to care home residents."
Paul Snell, chief inspector at the Commission for Social Care Inspection, which regulates standards in care homes, said: "It is vital that we give people who use care services and their relatives and friends the courage to complain if they or a loved one have been abused.
"It is just as important for staff in care settings to blow the whistle if they see abuse taking place. Once that abuse has come to light there must be proper collaboration between all the relevant agencies to resolve that issue quickly. The partnership approach being launched in Essex is to be commended."
The helpline launch comes after a group of peers and MPs denounced the "shameful" treatment of elderly people in hospitals and care homes in a report published in August.
The Joint Committee on Human Rights called for a "complete change of culture" in health and care services and said new legal obligations should be placed on old peoples' homes so their human rights were respected.
The helpline number is a freephone - distinct from the general helpline currently operated by Action on Elder Abuse - and will only be available to residents, relatives, staff and ancillary workers in 18 homes within the pilot project area.
Action on Elder Abuse has the only national freephone helpline dedicated to this cause.
By Sarah Womack
© Copyright of Telegraph Media Group Limited 2007.
