People learn about elder abuse and tools to address, prevent it

By Rob Vogt
Planning for your senior years can include how to avoid pitfalls, estate planning, personal directives, power of attorney, and reducing financial strain.
A total of about 15 people gathered at the Claresholm town office council chambers on Friday, June 23 to hear more about the subject and how it relates to elder abuse.
The presentation was given by Gabrielle Kirk, the coordinator for the Claresholm Coordinated Community Response to Elder Abuse and case manager for the Vulcan Regional Response to Elder Abuse.
She explained elder abuse refers to any intentional action or neglect that causes harm or distress to an older person.
It can occur in various settings, including homes, care facilities, or community environments.
The types of elder abuse are financial; emotional; physical; sexual; medication; spiritual; and neglect.
The most common type is financial abuse, but in a lot of cases it is coupled with emotional abuse.
Older adults may become more vulnerable to financial abuse due to factors such as cognitive decline; isolation; or dependency on others for financial management.
Lack of financial planning can leave people susceptible to exploitation, manipulation, and abuse.
Kirk stressed the importance of financial planning.
Financial planning empowers older adults by helping them maintain control over their financial affairs and decision-making. It enables people to set goals; make informed choices; and establish safeguards to protect their assets and resources.
Proper financial planning can help prevent financial abuse by implementing measures to safeguard an older person’s finances.
There are several tools to help including joint bank accounts; wills; establishing powers of attorney; and limiting access to personal financial information.
Joint accounts are bank accounts in which two or more people have ownership rights over the same account.
All account holders can deposit, withdraw, or deal with the funds in the account, no matter who puts the money into the account. You share equal access to the account and responsibility for all the transactions made through the account.
There are several common reasons for a joint bank account. Couples may set up a joint account to pay household bills or deal with other shared expenses. Joint accounts may be considered an option for someone to get help from family members or friends to pay bills and manage their finances. Health conditions or mobility issues could make it difficult for someone to manage their personal banking on their own.
However, there are risks with a joint bank account.
Any person named on the joint account is able to withdraw money from the account at any time. Funds withdrawn may never be recovered.
If the relationship breaks, you risk the money being withdrawn or the account may not be handled in the way you wished.
It is difficult to hold a joint account holder legally accountable for taking money from the account they weren’t supposed to.
Power of attorney is a legal document signed to give one person, or more than one person, the authority to manage your money and property on your behalf. It makes clear who will be responsible for your money and property if you can’t manage them on your own, and who will be responsible for your money and property if you can’t manage them on your own.
Kirk said it is very important to have.
There are two kinds of power of attorney.
Enduring power of attorney is effective immediately, becoming effective as soon as it is signed and executed by the principal, regardless of their mental capacity. It remains valid and in effect even if the principal later becomes mentally incapacitated or unable to make decisions.
Springing power of attorney only becomes effective upon the occurrence of a specific trigger event, which is typically the incapacity or mental incompetence of the principal. To activate it, the principal’s incapacity or mental incompetence must be established according to the criteria specified in the document.
A personal directive is a legal document made in case you cannot make your own decisions in the future. It names the person or people you have picked to make personal decisions for you.
Your instructions can be about any or all personal matters that are not financial, such as medical treatments you would or would not want; where you would like to live; and who you would like to live with.
A will is a legal document that allows an individual to express their wishes and instructions regarding the distribution of their assets and the handling of their affairs after their death. It serves as a legally binding document outlining how the individual’s property, possessions and other assets should be distributed among their chosen beneficiaries.
Wills are important in providing clarity and peace of mind; appointing guardianship and protecting your dependents; and minimizing tax liabilities and preserving wealth.
Finally, Kirk discussed limiting access to personal financial information.
She suggested to be cautious with sharing information; use automatic withdrawal and deposits for bills and payments; safeguarding important documents; designating trusted individuals; and regularly monitoring financial accounts.