Health workers' feelings and needs about the abuse on elderly living at home

Objectives: Responding a demand from the centre of elderly abused persons (Centre d’Aide aux Personnes Âgées Maltraitées CAPAM) the general medicine department of the Liège University conducted a qualitative research on the elderly abuse performed at home.
Methods: A half structured guide of interview concerning the health workers and their feelings and needs when looking after abused elderly people living at home was given to an interviewer. While performing the research, he recorded the nine focus groups chatting about elderly abused (in each group, they were 10 GP, nurses or nurses auxiliary). Results:General practitioners are mostly concerned by financial abuses, on the other hand, nurses and auxiliaries mostly talk about psychological or indifferent behaviours in elderly abused.
Everyone talks about family and professional neglects. GP‘s behaviours are eventually criticised by nurses and auxiliary nurses as well. GP are identified to have the hugest power to react, but they argue not to have time and to lack of means to identify and cope with elderly abuse. So, when called out by nurses or auxiliary nurses, they don’t eventually give them satisfying answers. Mixed meetings could be hold to get a better coping and detection of elderly abuse performed at home. Conclusions: Research allowed to sharpen GP’s, behaviours, attitudes and specific role according to nurses and auxiliaries in front of elderly abuse and get a better view of the help to bring them.