There are certain groups which are most at risk from abuse
There are certain groups which are most at risk from abuse, these groups tend to be the most vulnerable, these include, people with learning disabilities, elderly people, people with dementia, disabled people or people with mental health problems, these groups are most at risk because they are much more compliant than others and therefore would not know whether to stand up for themselves or not in an abusive situation. The vulnerable adult’s illness or disability will also leave them more reliable on the partner/family/carer, as they are the only ones to help them in everyday life, because of this, if they are abused, they are more likely to feel like it is their fault and therefore would not stand up for themselves or report it. However, this is not the only factor which puts these groups of being at risk, there are many factors which may lead to an abusive situation, factors include, environment, context and family history. Environment is a major factor, if abuse occurs, it is always affected by the environment, for example, if a vulnerable adult was in a hospital setting, then they have very strict rules and regulations in place and all staff need to be properly and extensively trained to work there, they also have very well trained and professional management which are there to ensure that good quality care is given constantly, because of this, in this environment, abuse would less likely happen however in an environment like a care home there would be more risk of abuse, this is because in a care home there tends to be much less strict rules and regulations because it is a private sector. Furthermore staff in a private care home will work with much less supervision than in a hospital, this would lead to a much higher risk of abuse, staff in a care home also don’t need as much training and qualifications than hospital staff if at all, this may lead to care home staff not providing adequate care. Another environment which has an even higher risk of abuse is home, abuse is most likely to happen in the person’s house by either a partner/family member or care worker because there is no supervision at all, family members and partners also might not know how to look after a vulnerable adult and therefore may lead to neglect. Although family members and partners may have the best intentions for their loved one when looking after them, that sometimes isn’t always the case and because there is no supervision in the house and the vulnerable adult would also have no one to report the abuse to, this puts the adult at a much higher risk.
