CLEARWATER, Fla., June 14, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On Friday the 15th of June, in recognition of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, the Florida Chapter of the Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR), a mental health watchdog organization co-founded by the Church of Scientology in 1969, will host an Open House at their headquarters in downtown Clearwater where the public can learn about the issues elders face in nursing homes. World Elder Abuse Awareness Day was launched in 2006 by the United Nations to promote a better understanding of abuse and neglect of older persons. It is also intended to support the UN’s call-to-action initiative to address elder abuse as a public health and human rights issue. [1]. June 15th also represents the one day in the year when the whole world voices its opposition to the abuse and suffering inflicted on some of our older generations. [2]
According to CCHR the condition of the elderly in nursing homes who are often quiet, appear somewhat vacant, blankly staring or deeply introspective and withdrawn is the result of prescription psychotropic drugs, Electroshock Treatment (ECT), or the threat of painful and demeaning restraints being applied involuntarily to them. [3]
“We are all concerned about our parents and grandparents,” said Diane Stein, President of CCHR Florida. “We expect them to be safe, but the use of psychiatric drugs and violent treatments to suppress them in old age, is more dangerous than any challenges they faced when younger.”
A 2011 report by the Office of the Inspector General noted that 304,983 elderly nursing home residents in the U.S. were given dangerous and often deadly antipsychotic drugs, of which 88% were prescribed off-label for dementia. The FDA has specifically issued its strongest “black box” warning on the use of antipsychotics in the elderly with dementia for its increased risk of death. [4]
Patricia McGinnis, Director of California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform, said, “The way antipsychotic drugs are used in nursing homes is a form of elder abuse…. Instead of providing individualized care, many homes indiscriminately use these drugs to sedate and subdue residents.”
“We respect the U.N.’s concern for our elderly citizens,” said Stein. “But until abusive, profit-driven, psychiatric practices against the elderly are eliminated, our goals for safety and dignity in old age are unlikely to be attained.”
About CCHR: Initially established by the Church of Scientology and renowned psychiatrist Dr. Thomas Szasz in 1969, CCHR’s mission is to eradicate abuses committed under the guise of mental health and enact patient and consumer protections. It was L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology, who brought the terror of psychiatric imprisonment to the notice of the world. In March 1969, he said, “Thousands and thousands are seized without process of law, every week, over the ‘free world’ tortured, castrated, killed. All in the name of ‘mental health.’” For more information visit, www.cchrflorida.org
[1] World Elder Abuse Awareness Day
https://www.acl.gov/news-and-events/events-and-observances/world-elder-abuse-awareness-day
[2] World Elder Abuse Awareness Day
http://www.un.org/en/events/elderabuse/
[3] Protect Our Elderly Against Drugs and Electroshock—Stop Abuse of the Elderly
https://www.cchrint.org/issues/protectelderly/#Treatment%20Facts
[4] MEDICARE ATYPICAL ANTIPSYCHOTIC DRUG CLAIMS FOR ELDERLY NURSING HOME RESIDENTS https://oig.hhs.gov/oei/reports/oei-07-08-00150.pdf
Media Contact:
Diane Stein
President, CCHR Florida
727-442-8820
diane@cchrflorida.org
www.cchrflorida.org