Ratio of Elderly and Abuse:

Caregiver neglect - 1:57

Financial Abuse - 1:44

Physical Abuse: 1:20

Psychological Abuse: 1:12

- Department of Justice

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More than 1.3 million people reside in nursing homes and long-term care facilities across the United States. In 2017, the National Ombudsman Reporting System (NORS) received more than 201,000 complaints of abuse and neglect from nursing home residents, family members, and other individuals.

For more information on nursing home abuse, see NursingHomesAbuse.org.

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• Approximately 2/3 of American seniors don't get the mental health support they need.

• On average, 8.5% of American seniors have a diagnosable anxiety disorder.

• About 25% of people with bipolar disorder are over 60 years of age (and this is expected to increase 50% by 2030).

• 1-5% of seniors are diagnosed with depression (11.5% are hospitalized and 13.5 receive in-home care).

For more information on statistics and types of care available, see Caring.com.

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• It's estimated that 20% of people 55+ live with a mental health concern.

• "[...] the rate of older adults with depressive symptoms tends to increase with age [...], depression is not a normal part of growing older. [...] in 80% of cases it is a treatable condition [...] depressive disorders are a widely under-recognized condition [...]."

 - CDC

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• " [mental and neurological] disorders in older people account for 17.4% of Years Lived with Disability (YLDs). The most common mental and neurological disorders in this age group are dementia and depression, which affect approximately 5% and 7% of the world’s older population, respectively. Anxiety disorders affect 3.8% of the older population, substance use problems affect almost 1% and around a quarter of deaths from self-harm are among people aged 60 or above."

• "Older people may experience life stressors common to all people, but also stressors that are more common in later life."

• Current evidence suggests that 1 in 6 older people experience elder abuse: physical, verbal, psychological, financial, sexual abuse, abandonment, neglect, and serious losses of dignity and respect.

• About 50 million people worldwide are living with dementia (almost 60% are living in low- and middle-income countries), and the number of people with dementia is projected to increase to 82 million in 2030 and 152 million in 2050.
  - World Health Organization (WHO)

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27% of seniors experience symptoms of anxiety that significantly impacts their functioning.

For more information on seniors and anxiety, see Senior Advice.

Many seniors struggle with PTSD; an anxiety disorder that is arguably for prudent to address in this demographic because a considerable amount have been struggling for decades and ongoingly neglected.

For more information on seniors and PTSD, see Senior Advice.