New way of tracking senior abuse in B.C. could give better picture of problem

VICTORIA – B.C.’s Office of the Seniors Advocate is launching an initiative aimed at getting a better picture of elder abuse and neglect in the province.

Seniors advocate Isobel Mackenzie says her office will work with Vancouver Coastal Health and other agencies for seniors to track abuse and neglect and examine the systems used to gather that data.

Recommendations on possible improvements to data-gathering methods will also be made.

Mackenzie says the initiative will lay the groundwork to enable accurate reporting of elder abuse and neglect.

Vancouver Coastal Health spokesman Darren Kopetsky says the project will help experts understand the magnitude of elder abuse in B.C., and MacKenzie believes the new data will mean more powerful recommendations from her office.

The health authority must submit its findings and recommendations to the Seniors Advocate by late August, and the information will be posted on the office’s website and updated as more cases of abuse, neglect or self-neglect are reported.