The Relating Factors of Elder Abuse among Community-dwelling Elderly with Stroke

Purpose: The purpose of this secondary analysis study was to examine the incidence of abuse and the contributing factors for that abuse among the Korean elderly with stroke. Methods: Data were derived from the 2008 Korean National Survey on Older Adults. The participants were 934 community-dwelling elderly with stroke. Data were analyzed using the Rao-Scott x²-test, simple logistic regression and multiple logistic regression with the PASW 18.0 complex samples analysis module. Results: The prevalence of elder abuse was 13.5%. Emotional abuse (10.0%) was the most frequently reported abuse, followed by financial neglect (3.8%), caring neglect (3.3%), financial abuse (2.1%), and physical abuse (1.9%). 44.6% of the perpetrators of emotional abuse were coresidential family members. Participants without spouses (odds ratio=2.05, 95% CI=1.14~3.68), those without diabetes (odds ratio=2.24, 95% CI=1.15~4.39), and depressed participants (odds ratio=2.72, 95% CI=1.34~5.52) were more likely to be abused. Conclusion: Emotional abuse was the most frequently reported type of abuse while physical abuse was least frequent among the elderly with stroke. Nurses caring for the elderly with stroke should be aware of the types of abuse and risk factors such as lack of spouse and incidents of depression.