The evaluation of child abuse and death in childhood is a specialized area that includes a vast body of knowledge.
They also highlight the need for medical examiners to receive additional training on this issue.[3]Another study documented practices that 46 of the 58 California coroner/medical examiner (CME) agencies use to decide whether to investigate an elder's death.
This study confirmed that CME offices do not assume jurisdiction over many elder deaths that experts in the field of elder mistreatment thought should be investigated because of signs of potential abuse or neglect.[4]In a subsequent phase of the project, the researchers worked with a Multidisciplinary Advisory Board to develop the Elder Suspicious Death Field Screen (ESDFS) and conducted a pilot study in three California CME agencies.
As a result, signs of abuse commonly recognized in younger decedents are missed in elders, and abuse is rarely seen as a cause of death. Final report submitted to the National Institute of Justice, January 2005, NCJ 209334.
These findings call for additional research on both the decision-making practices of medical examiners and the forensic markers of elder mistreatment.
Although most bruises are harmless and go away without treatment, easy bruising can sometimes be a sign of a more serious problem.
When this happens, blood leaks out of the vessels and initially appears as a black-and-blue mark.
“We are collecting video surveillance from the bank, as well as from area businesses." Bradley says she is speaking out so she can warn other seniors to be careful, and also because she wants to see her attacker caught.
Bruises commonly occur in children and are most often the result of a minor accidental injury.
An expert panel reviewed 55 of the completed forms. Final report to the Office for Victims of Crime, July 2008, NCJ 223288.
You don't recall bumping into anything, but lately you seem to be bruising frequently. Most bruises form when small blood vessels (capillaries) near the skin's surface are broken by the impact of a blow or injury — often on the arms or legs.