Training Senior Companion Volunteers to Identify and Report Adult Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Gerontology
• Social Work

Background:

• Elder abuse is a significant national public health concern with severe outcomes for older adults.
• The Senior Companion Program offers a potential avenue to combat elder abuse.
• Effective strategies are needed to equip volunteers with the skills to identify and report abuse.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop, implement, and evaluate an in-person training program for Senior Companion volunteers in Ohio.
• To assess the impact of the training on volunteers' knowledge and confidence in recognizing and reporting elder abuse.
• To determine the effectiveness of training community-dwelling older adult volunteers.

Main Methods:

• An in-person training program on elder abuse recognition and reporting was delivered to Senior Companion volunteers.
• Pre- and post-training surveys were administered to evaluate the program's effectiveness.
• A total of 302 volunteers participated, with a 76% survey response rate.

Main Results:

• A statistically significant improvement was observed in volunteers' subjective confidence in their knowledge of elder abuse (p = .029).
• Knowledge improvement was noted in one of five specific knowledge items (p < .000).
• The training demonstrated a positive impact on volunteers' perceived ability to address elder abuse.

Conclusions:

• Training Senior Companion volunteers is a viable strategy for enhancing elder abuse awareness and prevention efforts.
• Empowering volunteers through education can contribute to the protection of community-dwelling older adults.
• This initiative highlights the importance of targeted training programs in public health initiatives against elder abuse.