AGO teams with Ohio Pharmacists Association

Through a new partnership with the Ohio Pharmacists Association, the Ohio Attorney General’s Office plans to provide pharmacies statewide with printed materials about the growing problem of elderly abuse and exploitation.

The pharmacies, in turn, will share this information with their customers as part of Attorney General Dave Yost’s initiative to raise awareness of elder abuse and increase the reporting rate for such crimes.

“One of the most frequent places that older Ohioans visit regularly is a local pharmacy,’’ Yost said. “Our pharmacists are respected members of the community, and, given the frequency with which they encounter our senior residents, they can help spread the word about this heartbreaking trend and the importance of reporting it to authorities.”

In addition, Yost’s office is developing no-cost training for pharmacists to help them understand the types and signs of abuse and identify possible cases among their elderly customers. The partnership is the first of many that the Attorney General’s Office is working to form with “front line” organizations that regularly come in contact with older Ohioans.

“It’s going to take all of us – pharmacists, bankers, law enforcement, physicians, retirement communities, and you and me – to get at the root of this scourge,” Yost said. “Our senior citizens deserve dignity, protection and justice as much as anybody else.”