API Legal Outreach, established in 1975, provides multi-lingual and culturally competent legal, social, and educational services to the Asian and Pacific Islander community designed to prevent elder abuse. API Legal Outreach's staff speaks over 13 different Asian languages and provides both attorney representation and social services for seniors. In partnership with the San Francisco Police Department, the San Francisco District Attorney's Office, the San Francisco and Probate Court and the Asian Elder Abuse TAsk Force, we have trained over 500 police officers, prosecutors, judges, court personnel, and community workers in the areas of elder abuse and cultural competence.

For free training, community workshops, materials, questions about elder abuse in the API community, please contact us by email (info@apilgealoutreach.org) or telephone (415/567-6255).

What is Elder Abuse?

Elder Abuse is an act that results in harm or threatened injury to a person 65 years or older.  This website was designed to help services providers who come into contact with older individuals.  Elder abuse is a hidden problem in all of our communities but especially i communities where seniors have recently immigrated from other countries or do not speak English as a first language.  Seniors in the Asian and Pacific islander communities are much less likely to complain or report abuse.  Many barriers stand in their way preventing them from seeking help or believing that there is any help available.   First among the barriers is the need for culturally and linguistically appropriate services, something we call "cultural competence."

Elder Abuse can be any of the following:

• Physical Abuse can include hitting, punching, striking, pushing, sexual abuse, prolonged deprivation of food or water, withholding medication, the use of alcohol or unauthorized drugs to make the older person easier to care for, or any other act that can physically harm an elderly person.



• Emotional Abuse can be acts to humiliate, demean or threaten the elderly person. An abuser can intimidate an elderly person by destroying their property, hurting their pets or using menacing gestures and language.



• Neglect is failure to assist the elderly person in personal hygiene, to provide food, clothing, shelter, or to protect them from health and safety hazards.



• Financial Abuse can take many different forms. it can include forcing an elderly person to change their Will, theft, fraud, taking ownership of an elderly person’s home, stealing their social security checks, or withdrawing money from the elderly person’s bank accounts without their consent.



• Psychological Abuse includes manipulating, controlling or intimidating
  the elderly person.



• Isolation is preventing an elder from having visitors, telephone calls or receiving mail.




What do I do if an elderly person is abused?

1. Call 911 or your local Police Department;
2. Call Adult Protective Services;
3. Call API Legal Outreach (415-567-6255) for assistance in getting court orders to protect the elderly person from further abuse.

What can I do to help?

• Be supportive.
• Help elder find appropriate resources.
• Report It!

News/Updates