Knowledge and attitudes regarding elder abuse in the community, Eastern Province Saudi Arabia

The population of old people is increasing world-wide. Along with the increase in their population, an increase in the cases of elder abuse is expected. This study identifies the knowledge of elder abuse and attitudes towards it among the adult attendees of Al Qatif primary health care centers (PHCCs) in Saudi Arabia.

In this cross-sectional study, 430 participants at PHCCs, in Al Qatif, in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia completed a questionnaire concerning their knowledge of elder abuse and their attitudes toward the subjects of such abuse.

A total of 430 subjects participated in the study. The mean age of the respondents was 35.6 years. Participants included both caregivers (n = 93) and non-caregivers (n = 337). The overwhelming majority of respondents 97% stated that it is their individual responsibility to report elder abuse and neglect if they witness any. Similarly, (91.8%) of the participants agreed that elder abuse and neglect is a criminal act and they have the responsibility to prevent such abuse and neglect. Also, (90.7%) were aware of financial abuse, and (93.5%) believed that using swear words can be considered abuse, as it is not part of their culture. The majority of them (90.5%) agreed that occasional manhandling of the older people is violence/abuse.

Most of the participants regarded abuse and neglect of the older people as a serious problem and considered it their responsibility to intervene when they encountered it. Further efforts are required to explore the factors associated with elder abuse to utilize that knowledge in the development of effective interventions to prevent such abuse.