Abuse of elderly dementia patients

[Anchor]

Recently, there have been a series of cases of abuse against elderly people with dementia in nursing facilities.

It has been revealed that more than 500 cases occur every year, raising calls for measures to address the issue.

Reporter Kim Seong-soo has investigated whether prevention is possible.


[Report]

In early February, Mr. Park admitted his father to a nursing home.

Just three weeks after admission, his father, who has dementia, developed dark bruises on his face.

The perpetrator was a nursing assistant.

He was subjected to abuse, including being punched and thrown onto the bed.

[Park ○○/voice altered/dementia patient’s guardian: "There were three instances of assault a day... at 3 PM, 7 PM, and 11 PM. (The nursing home) did not contact us and claimed they didn’t know the reason."]

His father’s health deteriorated further, and he passed away last month from acute pneumonia.

[Park ○○/voice altered/dementia patient’s guardian: "He could eat by himself and sat up straight. (After admission) he gradually became thinner and appeared depressed, constantly sleeping…"]

At a municipal nursing home in Gwangyang, Jeollanam-do, an elderly dementia patient in his 80s was diagnosed with a femoral fracture after being assaulted multiple times by a nursing assistant.

According to a survey by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, cases of abuse against elderly dementia patients in facilities like nursing homes have occurred over 540 times each year for the past two consecutive years.

Most elderly care facilities do not allow families to access CCTV footage, citing the protection of residents' personal information.

This closed operation makes it difficult for cases of abuse against dementia patients to come to light.

[Dementia patient’s guardian/voice altered: "In nursing homes, if something inappropriate happens while they are there, it can harm them (they hide the problem)."]

Experts point out that external monitoring should be increased through specialized institutions for the elderly.

There is also a need to expand essential human rights training tailored for dementia patients.

[Jeong Soon-dul/Professor of Social Welfare at Ewha Womans University: "People often assume dementia patients don't understand what is happening, but they are aware, even if they cannot express it…"]

It has also been suggested that strong administrative measures, such as revoking the designation of a nursing home if abuse is revealed even once, should be considered as a solution.

This is KBS News, Kim Seong-soo.