Aging is a success to be celebrated, not a failure to fear. It is an opportunity to keep growing, learning, enjoying new perspectives and sharing experiences.

Unfortunately for many Canadians, aging means something much worse: being vulnerable to abuse and exploitation. Instances of older adult mistreatment are on the rise.

In June 2017, the World Health Organization reported that around 16% of older people worldwide -1 in 6- experience some form of mistreatment. In Canada between between 4.5% and 7.5% of older adults report experiencing abuse. The actual number of Canadian seniors experiencing some form of abuse is very likely closer to 8 to 10%. That’s double what it was in the late 80s and it keeps on growing. In fact, 250,000 older Canadians report experiencing financial abuse every year. The Centre for Disease Control’s January 2016 report formally established elder financial abuse as a public health issue. 

Elder mistreatment is an epidemic and just like all epidemics, it can be stopped with the right tools. If it happened to you or someone you know, would you know what to do? What to say? Who to turn to?  CNPEA is a not-for-profit network of Canadian individuals from a variety of backgrounds. We all have one thing in common: we are fighting elder abuse and helping people learn how to spot it and respond to it. Through CNPEA, healthcare professionals, bank staff, social workers, students, teachers, people like you, connect and exchange information, access relevant training, updates and resources.

We are building a caring community across Canada for a unified, efficient response - so that growing old in Canada is every bit as safe and beautiful as it should be.

For more information:www.cnpea.ca

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