Book review

Date01 November 2002
DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1108/14668203200200031
Pages47-48
Published date01 November 2002
AuthorDinah Mathew
Subject MatterHealth & social care,Sociology
The Journal of Adult Protection Volume 4 Issue 4 • November 2002 © Pavilion Publishing (Brighton) Limited 47
key words
Recognition of the need to raise awareness of the problem of
elder abuse world-wide led the World Health Organisation
(WHO) and the International Network for the Prevention of
Elder Abuse (INPEA), in partnership with organisations such
as HelpAge International, to launch the Global Response
Against Elder Abuse Project in 2001.
Missing Voices reports the first stage of the project and
summarises the findings from studies in eight countries across
the world. This explored the perceptions of elder abuse by
older people and primary health care workers through the use
of focus groups.
The individual reports (also available from the WHO
website, translated into English) are variable in style and
structure and each has material which is associated with the
country’s particular cultural and political environment.
However, common themes emerge, which are succinctly
summarised in the main report.
The strongest theme is governments’ failure to fulfil their
obligations towards older adults through provision of
adequate public services and income (defined in the
Argentinian report as ‘societal abuse’). In Kenya, Lebanon and
India the absence of a universal, free health service was
reported to affect older people particularly, as they are often
among the poorest in society and health is likely to deteriorate
with age.
In Kenya, the abandonment of older relatives at hospitals
by their families, especially at times of drought and poor
harvests, was seen as the most pressing problem for older
Missing Voices: Views
of Older Persons on
Elder Abuse
WHO/INPEA
Geveva, World Health
Organization, 2002
No ISBN1
Ageways Issue 59
Newsletter of HelpAge
International, London,
April 20022
Bookreview
1 Missing Voices: Views of Older Persons on Elder Abusecan be viewed at
www.who.int/hpr/ageing/elderabuse Reports from the eight countries that participated
are also available: Argentina, Brazil, India, Kenya, Lebanon, Canada, Austria and
Sweden.
2 HelpAge International is a network of non-government organisations working in
mainly developing countries with disadvantaged older people. Their newsletter can be
found on www.helpage.org or obtained from Publications, HelpAge International, PO
Box 32832, London N1 9ZN.

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