WHAT IS KNOWN ABOUT THIS TOPIC
• Elder abuse presents in any health care setting, including critical care.
• In Iowa, health care providers are required to report suspicions of elder abuse.
WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS
• Protocols for reporting elder abuse are needed in critical care settings.
• Barriers for older patients in critical care not reporting abuse are similar to other settings, including fear of retaliation, perpetrator is a
relative and physical injury.
Method: Through a mailed survey, critical care nurses were invited to participate in a taped in-depth qualitative interview.
Results: Ten nurses were interviewed. A thematic analysis was used to describe the following core themes: types of elder abuse, suspicions
of elder abuse, reporting of elder abuse, barriers to reporting elder abuse, legislation and improvement in practice.
Conclusions: Critical care nurses are aware of elder abuse and somewhat systematically evaluate for abuse at admission to their unit. They
recognize signs and symptoms of abuse and are suspicious when it is warranted. They are aware of why an older person does not want to
report abuse and take this into consideration when soliciting information. Facts, values and experience influence personally defining abuse,
suspicion and dependence for each individual health care professional.
Relevance to clinical practice: Critical care unit protocols and/or policies and procedure for reporting elder abuse are needed in critical
care settings and are warranted for providing quality of care.
Key words: Critical care • Elder abuse • Mandatory reporting • Qualitative study