This article explains what elderspeak is, how to recognise it, and how it patronises and disenfranchises older people in real life.
Maria is 88 and lives in residential aged care in Western Australia. After a series of falls, Maria knew she could no longer live independently. The former Montessori school teacher and widowed mother of six is still sharp as a tack. That’s how she knows, despite receiving excellent care in her new home, her rights are being violated multiple times a day.
The culprit is elderspeak and Maria experiences it from carers, agency staff, nurses, and management.
What is elderspeak?
Elderspeak is inappropriate simplified speech used with older adults, especially in health care settings. It can sound like baby talk and is generally perceived as patronising.
What does elderspeak look like in practice?
Common attributes of elderspeak are minimising words, using childish terms and phrases, and collective pronoun substitution. The language sounds bossy or controlling and is not how adults are normally addressed.