Prince George, B.C. – A province wide tour exploring elder abuse in the LGBT community touched down in Prince George Friday.

It was presented by the Simon Fraser University (SFU) Gerontology Research Centre in partnership with Northern Health and the University of Northern BC’s School of Social Work.

The purpose was to both raise awareness of issues relating to the LGBT community amongst people who deliver service and for those in the LGBT community to become aware of people who works in the elder abuse area.

An example of some of the resources available at Friday’s town hall – photo 250News

It touched on various forms of abuse in the LGBT community including emotional, sexual, psychological, and one that is less often talked about – financial.

“Where relatives think that it’s their entitlement to predistribute their inheritance, that they should take it first and figure ‘he’s old and doesn’t need it,” said Dr. Gloria Gutman, a professor emerita in SFU’s Gerontology Department.

“But some of that is illegal, it’s a crime but it’s very hard sometimes for the person who’s the victim and had bad experiences with the system – whether it’s the legal or medical systems.

She says another challenge is producing provincial statistics to show how prevalent elder abuse is in the LGBT community, though she hopes that will soon change.

“Our seniors advocate, Isobel Mackenzie, to her great credit has drawn attention to the need for agencies in the designated agencies to start collecting and making sure that they compile the numbers because numbers talk and numbers get attention.”

Despite the lack of numbers, Gutman says resources do exist to help elders suffering from abuse, including the BC Seniors Abuse Information Line or (SAIL).

She says it’s available province wide toll-free at 1-866-437-1940.