A recent study finds that approximately 10% of American seniors suffer elder abuse, but this problem is often missed in hospital emergency departments. Emergency doctors only make a formal diagnosis in one out of every 7,700 visits by seniors. American seniors often rely on emergency care doctors over primary care doctors for their routine care, making over 23 million emergency department visits per year. This represents an opportunity for emergency departments to identify elder abuse and ensure the safety of these seniors.
See Robert Preidt, Elder Abuse Often Missed in the ER, CBS News, November 25, 2016.
