CDC recently released Elder Abuse Surveillance: Uniform Definitions and Recommended Core Data Elements (PDF), one of the first publications designed to promote consistent terminology and data collection across organizations that work to prevent elder abuse. CDC developed the document with and for a wide range of stakeholders, including researchers on aging and individuals who work with service providers in roles that promote prevention, detection, and reporting of elder abuse. Differences in definitions and data elements used to collect information on elder abuse have made it difficult to measure elder abuse across jurisdictions and identify its trends and patterns. Consistent definitions and data elements are needed to move the elder abuse prevention field toward more robust epidemiologic estimates for evaluating prevention strategies and setting prevention priorities. The newly released document is a starting point for advancing public health surveillance aimed at preventing elder abuse.
