Official statistics on elder abuse released yesterday by the Health Service Executive (HSE) do not include hundreds of complaints made by members of the public about standards of care in nursing homes, it has emerged.
Almost 1,000 referrals were made to the HSE's elder abuse services last year, new figures show.
Of these cases, some 93 per cent involve a family relationship between the alleged abuser and the older person.
Community health care staff are the main source of referral (38 per cent), followed by family (16 per cent), and other HSE staff (14 per cent).
Most of the abuse was deemed to be psychological (29 per cent), financial (20 per cent) or physical (20 per cent). However, the statistics do not include complaints by members of the public regarding sub-standard care in nursing homes, according to senior officials. These complaints, estimated to be in their hundreds at least, are referred to the Nursing Home Inspectorate.
The absence of these figures may distort the extent of family involvement in abuse, according to officials involved in monitoring elder abuse, although there is no doubting its overall significance.
Age Action Ireland said the HSE's figures were just "the tip of the iceberg" and the real scale of abuse was likely to be significantly higher. The organisation's head of advocacy and communications, Eamon Timmins, said Age Action had used the results of international studies which show that between 3 per cent and 5 per cent of the older population have been victims of elder abuse.
"If applied to the Republic, this would mean that between 14,000 and 23,000 older people would have experienced elder abuse during the latter years of their lives," he said.
Age Action has urging anyone who suspects an older person is being abused to contact their local HSE office for a contact number for an elder abuse officer.
"When you are dealing with older people who may be vulnerable and afraid to speak out, doing nothing is not an option," Mr Timmins said.
"Some older people who are being abused are afraid to speak out, for fear that they may be taken away from their carer."
In a statement, the HSE said that in most cases of abuse, interventions such as increased monitoring of the client in the community, additional home support, counselling, education and respite helped to end any form of mistreatment.
Elder abuse officers work closely with older persons and their families by determining what supports and interventions may be needed to alleviate the situation and prevent further concerns arising.
Safety plans are drawn up in collaboration with the multi-disciplinary team involved and includes liaison with voluntary and statutory agencies as appropriate.
Anyone concerned about abuse of older people can contact the HSE's dedicated helpline at 1850 241850.