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Financial Exploitation in Aging: What to Know & What to Do

by Leslie Kernisan, MD MPH 19 Comments

Here’s an upsetting situation that comes up a lot, and may have come up for you: is someone financially taking advantage of Mom or Dad?

It’s a pretty legitimate concern to have. To begin with, most people know that there are plenty of “scammers” out there, phoning or mailing older adults with deceptive information designed to hoodwink them out of some of their savings.

But there’s actually another form of exploitation that may be more common, and is often harder for families to address.

That would be exploitation perpetrated by a someone the older person knows and has a personal relationship with.

Sometimes the person suspected of exploitation is relatively new to the older person’s life, such as a new romantic interest, friend, or paid caregiver.

In other cases, family members become concerned that someone in the family – such as one of the older person’s children – is beginning to take financial advantage of things.

Exploitation in the context of personal relationships is often especially tricky for families to address. The older person may be quite attached to – or otherwise feel dependent on – the person that others perceive as suspicious or problematic. Or there may be concerns about stirring up family dramas and conflicts, by voicing concerns about a sibling or another relative.

People are often unsure of what exactly constitutes illegal activity, and what can be done if they are concerned about financial exploitation.

So in this article, I’ll cover the key things you should know, so that you can better evaluate and address a worrisome situation, should one arise.

Specifically, in this article I’ll explain: [Read more…]

Filed Under: Geriatrics For Caregivers Blog, Helping Older Parents Articles Tagged With: elder abuse, financial concerns, memory

5 Things to Know about Aging & Financial Decline

by Leslie Kernisan, MD MPH 2 Comments

Aging woman counting moneyYou probably already know that many older adults develop problems managing finances as they age.

Now how would you answer the questions below:

 

  • Has your older relative planned for a decline in financial abilities?
  • Are you prepared to detect signs of a financial decline?
  • Do you know what to do if you do notice problems with finances?

Many people, even the ones who are caring and well-informed, will often answer “no” to these questions.

But this post will equip you to start answering yes. And I want you to be able to answer yes, because declines in the ability to manage finances are very common among older adults, and often causes serious health and life problems.

Unless, that is, you learn to plan ahead to minimize problems, and take effective action once problems occur. Which may not be as hard as you think it will be.

The trouble, of course, is that financial decline is uncomfortable for seniors and for their families to think about. Managing money, after all, is one of the ways we maintain autonomy and control over our lives.

So nobody likes to confront the fact that our ability to manage money will — in all likelihood — some day decline. (Recent research suggests that even seniors who don’t develop dementia often experience declines in financial ability.) And families are understandably squeamish about monitoring an older relative’s financial abilities.

Fortunately, a little education and guidance can make it much easier for seniors and families to be more proactive about this tough topic.

Hence I was thrilled to see the New York Times recently address financial problems in seniors, in an excellent article titled “As Cognition Slips, Financial Skills Are Often the First to Go.”

This article was in the NYT “Money” section, but senior financial problems are definitely a senior health problem.

Furthermore, there are definitely some medical approaches you can take, both to reduce declines in financial ability and to properly evaluate them when they occur.

In this post, I’ll share what I found most useful from the NYT article. And then I’ll add some advice from what we know in geriatrics, so that you’ll better understand how health care can help you prevent and evaluate problems with finances.

6 Warning Signs of Financial Decline

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Aging health, Geriatrics For Caregivers Blog, Helping Older Parents Articles Tagged With: financial concerns, memory

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