Materials and Method: This study was conducted on 524 volunteer physicians working at public institutions and hospitals or private hospitals and private clinics. They completed a questionnaire including questions evaluating physicians" demographic characteristics, education regarding elder abuse and neglect, diagnostic approaches, and knowledge about the approach to elder abuse and neglect. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and graphical analysis using SPSS 21.0 software.
Findings: Forty five percent of the physicians indicated that they encountered elder abuse and neglect. Neglect was most common, with 37.4% of physicians reporting this. Only 24.3% of the physicians who encountered elder abuse and neglect stated that they had notified the authorities of the same. When the physicians were asked for their reasons for not reporting elder abuse and neglect cases, the most common response (62.3%) was concern that the older person could be harmed further.
Conclusion: Based on our findings, necessary legal arrangements should be made to provide home care for the older persons, families should be financially supported, research into this topic should be conducted, and propose solutions should be developed.
Keywords : Elder Abuse; Physician; Jurisprudence