While domestic violence often goes unnoticed and unreported, home healthcare workers are positioned to be the first to spot its signs. This means your home care agency's domestic violence online training can help caregivers recognize and respond to abuse – regardless of whether your state mandates domestic abuse training.
This month is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, a critical time to focus on domestic violence online training for caregivers – with extra emphasis on recognizing elder abuse.
Elder abuse, including neglect and exploitation, is experienced by about 1 in 10 people aged 60 and older who live at home. From 2002 to 2016, more than 643,000 older adults were treated in the emergency department for nonfatal assaults and over 19,000 homicides occurred.
To recognize signs of domestic abuse and provide appropriate support, employees must receive adequate domestic violence online training. Many states require home health agencies to provide domestic violence training in addition to mandated reporting. Even in states that don’t require DV training, managed long-term care insurance companies often require that home care agencies in their plan offer elder abuse training.
It can be challenging to recognize the signs of domestic violence since it often happens in private. This is why it’s essential to train home health caregivers to notice potential signs of abuse, such as the following:
While some forms of abuse are visibly apparent, more subtle signs can also indicate that a patient is a victim of domestic abuse. If you suspect your client is being abused, here are some examples of psychological signs to watch for that may indicate the relationship is abusive:
Elder Abuse is the physical, sexual, psychological, emotional, or financial abuse or neglect of older people. The abusers are often adult family members (children or spouses) of the victim.
Here are some examples of what typical elder abuse looks like:
Be alert and aware of your client’s situation. Elder abuse victims do not often report the abuse, especially when it’s done by loved ones.
Domestic violence online training must include how to respond and how to report it.
Mandated reporting
Laws for mandated reporting of abuse vary for each state. They all fall under one of these four categories:
Click here to find your state’s DV reporting requirements here.
Once caregivers identify and address the issue calmly and without judgment, they need to be trained to help ensure the safety of the client.
A safety plan is a personalized, step-by-step plan to keep a person (and any children, pets, or possessions) safe while remaining in an abusive relationship while planning to leave the relationship, and/or after leaving the relationship
Here's a sample safety plan from the National Center on Domestic and Sexual Violence. Include the following:
Caregivers are often the first and sometimes the only witnesses to the details of an abusive situation. Because of this, it’s crucial to record and process all evidence relating to the abuse correctly.
The information you gather during a routine medical examination and/or during conversations with an abuse victim may become crucial legal evidence in a trial to convict the abuser.
Caregivers need to be trained to record and report the information your client shares about:
Training should include reminders to ask questions like:
Victims of abuse may not always respond willingly to these questions, but just knowing that someone is aware of their situation may be the first step toward getting help.
If the client admits to experiencing any kind of IPV, there are more questions you should ask to ensure the client’s safety before discharging them or leaving their home.
Before discharging a client who has disclosed abuse, ask:
If possible, ask to schedule a follow-up session, either at the same place, at an abuse shelter, or at another safe location.
As a home health agency, it’s likely at some point that caregivers will encounter signs of domestic violence or abuse during a routine home visit. All caregivers must be trained to screen for signs of abuse actively.
Providing initial domestic abuse prevention online training and ongoing support from supervisors is important to ensure continued understanding and application. With effective domestic abuse online training, home health agencies can create practical training that equips caregivers with the necessary skills to recognize signs of abuse and respond appropriately.
For additional support, reach out to the National Assistance Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-SAFE (7233).
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