How to recognise abuse and neglect
What is psychological abuse?
Psychological abuse is an act that causes emotional pain or injury, including:
- insults
- bullying
- harassment
- threats
- controlling behaviours
- social isolation (physical and/or emotional).
Signs of psychological abuse can include:
- reluctance to talk
- nervousness
- anxiety
- fear
- apathy
- resignation (showing signs of giving up)
- excessive passiveness or compliance
- low self-esteem
- uncertainty about, or reluctance to share their opinions
- social withdrawal
- avoiding eye contact
- lacking interest in self or environment
- distrust and/or conflict with family and friends (e.g. due to abuser’s lies and manipulation)
- lack of contact with family or friends (e.g. due to abuser denying access or relocating the victim to a faraway place to hide the abuse).
What is financial abuse?
Financial abuse is the misuse or theft of a person’s money or assets, including:
- “borrowing” the adult’s money to cover a shortfall
- cash withdrawals or transfers to the decision maker or others that are not for the adult’s benefit
- buying the adult’s assets for less than they’re worth (e.g. a car)
- using the adult’s assets for free (e.g. rent-free accommodation).
Signs of financial abuse can include:
- insufficient funds to pay for essentials like accommodation, food, medicine, and transport
- unpaid loans, rent, residential aged care fees or service-provider bills
- giving or lending money to family members when:
- this wasn’t something the person normally did
- the person can’t afford to give or lend the money
- an attorney or administrator gave or lent the money in a way that went against their legal duties
- displacement or homelessness
- access to, or control of, bank accounts and other assets by someone the victim has previously refused giving access or control to.
Financial abuse investigations
We often investigate allegations that someone, like an attorney, is making poor financial decisions for an adult who can’t make decisions for themselves.
The person suspected of causing harm is often a family member, usually the adult’s grown-up child.
If you suspect financial abuse, report it as soon as possible. It’s often accompanied by other types of abuse, like psychological or physical abuse.
What is physical abuse
Physical abuse is an act that causes physical pain or injury to a person, including:
- rough handling (e.g. when being helped to go to the toilet, shower or get dressed)
- physical assault, including pushing, slapping, punching and/or kicking.
Signs of physical abuse can include:
- injuries (e.g. bruises, welts, cuts, burns, swelling, sprains, fractured or broken bones)
- signs of restraint (e.g. at the wrists or waist)
- being overly obedient to or avoiding a specific person
- sudden changes in behaviour, like mood swings or unusual aggression.
What is sexual abuse?
Sexual abuse is sexual behaviour performed without a person’s consent, including:
- unwanted touching of a sexual nature
- sexual assault
- rape.
Signs of sexual abuse can include:
- sudden changes in behaviour (e.g. anxiety or panic)
- insistence on sleeping fully clothed when this is out of character
- being overly obedient to or avoiding a specific person
- bruising (e.g. around the breasts, inner thighs, or genitals)
- unexplained genital or urinary tract infections or bleeding
- difficulty walking or sitting.
What is neglect?
Neglect is when a carer or other responsible person fails to meet a person’s basic needs, including providing:
- food
- housing
- medical care.
Self-neglect is a type of abuse that often happens when a person doesn’t have any care or support in place, like home care.
Signs of neglect can include:
- squalid living conditions
- poor hygiene (e.g. bad odour, urine rash)
- dirty clothes
- malnourishment and/or weight loss
- dehydration
- bed sores
- over sedation
- overgrown nails
- decaying teeth
- broken or missing aids (e.g. spectacles, hearing aids)
- missed medical and other appointments.
Inappropriate or inadequate decision-making arrangements
We also investigate complaints about inappropriate or inadequate decision-making arrangements for an adult with impaired decision-making ability, where:
- an attorney, guardian and/or administrator or informal decision maker is making decisions for an adult, however they are neglecting their duties, abusing their power, or otherwise not protecting the interests of the adult
- no-one is making decisions for the adult, and appointing a guardian or administrator to make decisions would help protect them from abuse or neglect.