Home care workers are increasingly in demand, but what can they do when their sexual abuser is also their patient, and his enabler is your employer?
First, this home care worker says she was harassed by a man she was helping. Then, she was fired for protecting herself.
Personal care aides and home health aides make up the country’s second and third fastest-growing occupations, according to a 2014 report from the Paraprofessional Healthcare Institute, a national organisation that trains such workers and their employers. But increasingly, they are also being victimised by their patients, and then by their employers.
Such abuses are unacceptable and it’s up to all of us to ensure that the victims, society's care givers, are protected. That’s how i see it.
#abuse #sexualabuse #Personalcareaides #CareAides #homehealthaides
Since i researched and posted the piece about the home care workers, I discovered some statistics are relevant to this story and to all of us who are ageing, regardless of what stage we're at.
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Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.I was an RN, 6 years in home care...mostly had comments; I would go out to the car and report to my supervisor. Usually social work went out to assess, and sometimes the patient/family were told to find care elsewhere.
The most disgusting incident happened when I was changing a Foley catheter...was about to insert the new one when the man made a truly nasty proposition. I dropped him and the catheter, took off my gloves, and left. He later apologized, but I was no longer his nurse!
There were incidents of near-assault that was not sexual. Luckily I was always able to evade those.
CarolinaGirl60
Level 8
June 10, 2018
2
You handled that perfectly. It is sad that you had to handle it at all. I've heard too many similar stories from care workers, at home or within institutions, like nurses and LPNs. It seems to be a problem in all jurisdictions. And some manage them and protect their staffs better than others.
Health care workers in general often times experience sexual harassment from their patients. It isn't uncommon in clinical situations as opposed to the home...the difference being that at least in the clinical setting their employees aren't firing them for reporting it. I think the core issue is abusive patients...not just sexually, but verbally and physically as well.
AdorkableMe
Level 7
June 10, 2018
2
Frankly, I would have started to document and then hired an attorney! I was a home health care worker for 15 yrs, I never had such an abusive experience, but I would have taken legal actions, if I had!
Freedompath
Level 9
June 10, 2018
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