The Miami Herald has ran various pertinent columns as a follow-up to its gut-wrenching investigative report, "Neglected to Death," that exposes frail, elderly victims of abuse and neglect in Florida's state-licensed assited living facilities. The column below is from Carmen Caldwell, executive director of Citizens’ Crime Watch of Miami-Dade:




Posted on Thursday, May 5, 2011
Florida’s elders can be targets for crime

By Carmen Gonzalez Caldwell
Special to The Miami Herald

This past week I attended the Florida Attorney General’s training on “Law Enforcement’s Role in Elder Crime” which is part of one of our certification requirements. I was overwhelmed with all the information, but more so by the horrors they spoke about, the abuse of our senior citizens at the hands of not only family members, but those who have to live in nursing homes. I was heart-broken seeing the pictures of seniors abused through no fault of their own. Now I know there are many more good residential homes than there are bad, but this is why we in the community need to stay alert when adult-living facilities or residential homes show up in our neighborhoods.

Let me give you some interesting information that I learned in this class:

• During the 20th Century the number of persons 65 or older jumped from 1 in 25 Americans to the current statistic of 1 in 8.

• Florida currently has over 5 million licensed drivers over the age of 55.

• 19 percent of Florida’s population is over 65, making our state No. 1 in the nation for its over-65 percentage.

Something else you need to be aware of is the breakdown: OLD means 65 to 74 years of age; OLDER means 75 to 84 years of age and OLDEST means 85 years of age and older. What an increase in life expectancy!

Where do “seniors” live: Only 2 to 4 percent of the senior population reside in long-term care facilities (nursing homes). The remainder either live independently or in Assisted Living Facilities.

Did you know that women will live longer than the average man? Elderly women outnumber elderly men by a ratio of 3 to 2, but in the 85-and-over category this increases to 5 to 2. Consequently most elderly men are married, but most elderly women are not.

This training was a great eye-opener with the issues that are prevalent to our elderly population, but what was even more of an eye-opener is that we all need to be better prepared in order for our elderly not to become endangered, abused or scammed as we have seen in the past.

It is extremely important that if we have a loved one in a residential facility that we participate in their care as much as possible because in most cases they themselves will not report it for fear of being ejected from the home and have no place to live.

Our elderly are the most vulnerable to the effects of crime victimization thru physical, financial and emotional/psychological maneuvers. Which when you look at it in whole, you now know why there is so much Medicaid/Medicare fraud in our state.

This class was intense, and I probably could write more, especially on Medicaid fraud, but what is important for now that you remember this number: Florida Abuse Hotline: 1-800-962-2873 if you suspect abuse of an elderly person.

Crime prevention is essential to insure the safety of our most precious residents through education.

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Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/04/28/v-print/2190354/floridas-elders-can-be-targets.html#ixzz1LgvnsAkz