Faith Leaders - NCALL - The National Clearinghouse on Abuse in Later Life

Many older Americans turn to their faith communities and faith leaders for help when they are experiencing abuse. Older survivors know and deeply trust faith leaders and community members and often reach out for assistance in times of great need. As a faith leader, you can play a critical role in responding to abuse as well as improving access to services and supports for older survivors in your community. You may also be in a unique position to observe signs of abuse and indicators of abusive behavior.

Selected Resources

Bringing Together Faith and Safety for Older Adults (January 2023)

cover of Bringing Together Faith and Safety

If you are a faith community leader or a member of a faith community, you can play an important role in helping older adults who are experiencing abuse find help. This resource can help you stay alert for signs of abuse and learn how to respond safely and effectively.

Elder Abuse and Faith Resource (December 2020)

The COVID-19 pandemic intersects with an elder abuse crisis that already affects at least 1 in 10 older adults in the U.S. The pandemic can worsen this abuse as older adults may be sheltering with their abusers, economic insecurity may be putting older adults at greater risk for financial exploitation, and physical distancing may make it more difficult to reach out for help.

Safe Havens Interfaith Partnership, the National Clearinghouse on Abuse in Later Life, and Futures Without Violence, recently collaborated to create a new resource for faith leaders & faith communities to help reach and support older adults during COVID-19. If you are a faith leader or a member of a faith community, you have an important role to play. Everyone can be a resource and ally for older adults in their community. Follow this link to learn more.

Letter to Faith Leaders (April 2020)

Safe Havens Interfaith Partnership Against Domestic Violence and Elder Abuse and the National Clearinghouse on Abuse in Later Life wrote a letter encouraging faith leaders to raise awareness about elder abuse and help to support older victims. This letter has been endorsed by 22 other national organizations.

We invite you to share THIS LETTER and the resources on this page with faith leaders in your community as well as friends and family who can pass the letter to their faith leaders.

Thank you for your continued commitment to the communities and programs you serve. Now more than ever your efforts are vital to older victims and survivors of abuse.

Safe Havens Interfaith Partnership Against Domestic Violence and Elder Abuse

National Clearinghouse on Abuse in Later Life

Asian Pacific Islander Institute on Gender-Based Violence

Esperanza United

FaithTrust Institute

Futures Without Violence

HEART

Jewish Women International

Justice in Aging

National Adult Protective Services Association

National Association of Local Long-Term Care Ombudsman

National Coalition Against Domestic Violence

National Center on Elder Abuse

National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care

National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center

National Long-Term Care Ombudsman Resource Center

National Network to End Domestic Violence

National Resource Center for Reaching Victims

Peaceful Families Project

Resource Sharing Project

Ujima Inc: The National Center on Violence Against Women in the Black Community

Weill Cornell Medicine’s NYC Elder Abuse Center

The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Center for Elder Justice at the Hebrew Home at Riverdale

Safe Havens and NCALL: Where Faith and Safety Meet

In 2010, Safe Havens and NCALL released an elder abuse and faith toolkit intended to support service providers and advocates as they reach out to and collaborate with local faith communities. This toolkit, Where Faith and Safety Meet: Faith Communities Respond to Elder Abuse, offers resources for service providers and advocates, as well as for faith communities. We hope that, working together, service providers and faith communities can respond more effectively to victims and survivors and increase access to community-based services.

Facts bookmark (PDF 653 KB)
Where Faith and Safety Meet: Faith Communities Respond to Elder Abuse brochure (PDF 4.47 MB)
Where Faith and Safety Meet: Faith Communities Respond to Elder Abuse booklet (PDF 2.33 MB)
Where Faith and Safety Meet: Faith Community and Service Provider Partnerships to Strengthen Support for Elder Abuse Victims and Survivors article (PDF 188 KB) — this article describes NCALL’s collaboration with Safe Havens Interfaith Partnership on Domestic Violence and Elder Abuse to address the critical need for faith communities and service providers to work together to address elder abuse.

Safe Havens and NCALL: Partnering to Address Faith and Safety

In 2013, Safe Havens and NCALL released a companion toolkit, Partnering to Address Faith and Safety: A Guide for Faith Leaders and Domestic and Sexual Violence Service Providers to Assist Older Victims of Abuse. This guide provides ideas, best practices, and strategies for domestic and sexual violence service providers and faith leaders to build partnerships that support older victims and survivors.

Partnering to Address Faith and Safety: A Guide for Faith Leaders and Domestic and Sexual Violence Service Providers to Assist Older Victims of Abuse (PDF 1.84 MB)

Peaceful Families Project Imam Toolkit

https://www.peacefulfamilies.org/imam-toolkit.html

Other pages in this section

Abuse in Later Life: Virtual Training for Prosecutors

The National Clearinghouse on Abuse in Later Life (NCALL), under a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women, is pleased to offer these recorded webinars on abuse in later life for prosecutors. Elder abuse is a...

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Civil Attorneys

Civil attorneys and other civil legal system professionals work each day to ensure victim safety and hold offenders accountable for harm to older survivors. Their knowledge and understanding of the fundamentals of elder abuse, as well as the legal remedies and non-litigation resources available to older survivors, are critical in developing effective intervention strategies to end elder abuse and prevent further harm to older adults.

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Crime Victim Services Providers/Advocates and Criminal Justice Systems Stakeholders

Crime victim services providers, advocates, VOCA administrators, and other stakeholders and professionals within the crime victims field need resources and critical information to address the systemic barriers faced by older victims seeking access to healing supports and just outcomes.

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Domestic and Sexual Violence Advocates and Programs

Many older survivors will seek the help of domestic and sexual violence advocates and programs in dealing with the abuse they experience. Older victims can benefit from many of the services traditionally offered by domestic violence and sexual assault programs such as individual and peer counseling, support groups, emergency and transitional housing, and specialized economic and legal advocacy.

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Healthcare Providers

Health care providers are in a unique position to identify and respond to abuse in later life. Often, many older adults, especially survivors, have an ongoing relationship with one or more health care providers. Primary care physicians, emergency room staff, geriatricians, dentists, physical therapists, and other providers each have an opportunity to see injuries suggesting abuse, neglect, or exploitation, or indicators of trauma.

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Prosecutors

A significant number of reported cases of elder abuse do not progress through the criminal justice system. Whether an elder abuse case is successfully prosecuted may depend on a prosecuting attorney’s familiarity with effective investigation and prosecution strategies. Further, prosecutors must be able to collaborate across disciplines to increase victim identification, to encourage victims to engage with the criminal system, and to ultimately hold more offenders accountable.

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Law Enforcement

As first responders, law enforcement officers can play a key role in providing an effective response to abuse in later life at the local level. In many cases, law enforcement can use tools already used in domestic violence, stalking, child abuse, and sexual abuse cases to interview victims and gather evidence. Officers can also benefit from learning about abuse in later life and abuse dynamics; appropriate referral resources for intervention and support for older victims; and working collaboratively with other organizations.

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Professionals Working in Tribal Communities

In many cultures, elders preserve traditions and share wisdom to help ensure community permanency and balance. Indigenous communities often hold elders in a unique and important social position. The dramatic increase in the number of older individuals has led to concern over the well-being of older adults in these communities.

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