Submission to the Inquiry into the relationship between domestic, family and sexual violence, and suicide

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The relationship between elder abuse and suicide

Elder abuse is a significant yet under-recognised form of family violence across Australia, and is defined by the World Health Organisation as:

“a single or repeated act or lack of appropriate action, occurring within any relationship where there is an expectation of trust which causes harm or distress to an older person”.i

Elder abuse can occur once or many times, be intentional or unintentional, and can vary in severity from subtle through to extreme. It can be financial, emotional, psychological, physical, sexual, or social, and often involves a combination of different types of abuse. Most often, elder abuse is carried out by someone known to the older person, with two thirds of those causing abuse or mistreatment being an adult child. Elder abuse affects people of all genders and all walks of life. The abuse, however, disproportionately affects women.

Under the Family Violence Protection Act 2008 (Vic), elder abuse constitutes family violence. As such, suicides linked to domestic, family and sexual violence (DFSV) include elder abuse related deaths. Despite this legislative clarity, elder abuse remains largely hidden, inconsistently identified, and unevenly captured across service, justice, and data systems. These limitations have direct implications for how suicide linked to DFSV is understood, investigated, and prevented in later life.

Available evidence suggests that elder abuse is prevalent and increasing in both scale and severity. As Victoria’s population continues to age, the prevalence and pressures driving elder abuse are likely to intensify. Unlike other forms of family violence, older people experiencing abuse often seek to preserve family relationships rather than exit them, which can limit disclosure and engagement with formal systems, including mental health support services.

Evidence also indicates a clear and concerning relationship between elder abuse and suicidality in later life. International studies suggest that older people who experience abuse are at an increased risk of suicidal ideation, attempted suicide, and death by suicide, even after accounting for other health and social factors. Suicide in later life is itself frequently under-identified. Deaths involving self-neglect, medication non-adherence, refusal of care, or ambiguous circumstances may not be classified as suicide, particularly where intent is difficult to establish. These challenges are amplified in elder abuse contexts, where harm is often subtle, relational, and poorly documented. As a result, suicide linked to elder abuse is likely to be under-counted rather than rare.

Systemic challenges further limit the identification of elder abuse related suicide. Underreporting by older people, limited recognition across mainstream family violence and aged-care services, inconsistent documentation practices, and variable frontline identification all contribute to low system visibility. While the coronial process and the Victorian Suicide Register provide important mechanisms for capturing DFSV-related deaths, their effectiveness is constrained by the quality and availability of information at early stages of reporting and investigation. Where elder abuse has not been recognised prior to death, it is less likely to be identified later through coronial processes.

Taken together, these factors mean that elder abuse related suicide is more likely to be under-identified than rare. The evidence suggests that elder abuse is a significant, growing, and distinct form of family violence that intersects with suicide risk in later life yet remains inadequately captured within current systems. Improving the visibility of elder abuse across prevention, service delivery, data collection, and coronial investigation is critical to strengthening DFSV-related suicide prevention and ensuring that older people are not overlooked in policy, practice, and reform efforts.

Specifically, we recommend that:

1. Ageism is recognised as a structural barrier to suicide prevention.
2. Nationally consistent adult safeguarding standards are established.
3. Investment is committed towards research on suicide in later life.
4. Funding is committed towards the implementation of the National Plan to End the Abuse and Mistreatment of Older People.
5. National leadership on the distinct nature of DSFV and suicide in later life is strengthened.