As referred to in our recent article, Queensland is likely to soon have coercive control laws in place that will apply, not only to intimate partner relationships, but to a wide range of family relationships.
The coercive control laws will be aimed at economic abuse as well as emotional, psychological and other forms of control.
From the point of view of addressing elder financial abuse, the new laws are tremendously welcome.
For aged care providers, home care providers and others, it is often their staff who are in a unique position to see what is going on for vulnerable people and who are well-placed to pick up on the subtle clues that can be at play in a coercive control situation.
Take the following situation:
Julie is a support worker engaged by a not-for-profit, providing home care service to Sam, an elderly man who is living in his own home.
Sam’s adult son, Geoffrey, has recently returned to live with Sam ‘to care’ for him but Geoffrey has a history of alcohol and drug use. Although Sam seems happy about this for a while, over a number of months, Julie detects changes in Sam. He is becoming timid and withdrawn and Julie has noted that Geoffrey often bosses Sam around and speaks down to him. She’s noted a lot of beer bottles in the rubbish bin and the house seems to be messier now that Geoffrey is living there.
One day as Julie walks up the path, she hears Geoffrey yelling at Sam and telling him that unless he signs the house over to him, he’ll put Sam into aged care. When she knocks on the door, Geoffrey answers it and tells her that Sam has decided he doesn’t need her help anymore.
Over the next few weeks, Julie tries to get into the house to see Sam but Geoffrey keeps sending her away.
For Julie and the not-for-profit organisation that she works for, this is a dilemma.
Julie and her employer need to understand their duty of care to Sam and may need legal advice to assist them in meeting that duty of care.
With the introduction of the coercive control laws, organisations such as the one that Julie works for, will need to ensure that their staff are aware of the domestic and informal care arrangements that will be covered by the new legislation and that they understand the types of behaviour which should raise concerns for them.