Rural Elder Mistreatment and Abuse Prevention Discussion

The National Rural Health Association (NRHA), through the National Rural Age-Friendly Initiative (NRAFI), NRHA’s partnership with The John A Hartford Foundation (JAHF), is pleased to invite you to join the State Rural Health Association (SRHA) & State Office of Rural Health (SORH) Webinar on Elder Mistreatment and Abuse Prevention. This is a focused discussion on advancing collaborative and integrated approaches to preventing and responding to elder mistreatment in rural communities.

This webinar is offered in collaboration with Trust for America’s Health (TFAH). It will be facilitated by Kathy Greenlee of ADvancing States, who is a nationally recognized leader in aging policy and system change. 

Research has shown that many rural older adults face a higher risk for elder mistreatment due to factors such as ageism, elder cognitive and physical decline, elder financial strains, caregiver strains, geographic isolation, limited infrastructure, services, workforce shortages, and uneven systems of care compared to urban areas. Addressing these challenges requires intentional collaboration across public health, aging sector/services, healthcare, legal, and community-based systems, along with strategic integration into existing state and rural health efforts.

This webinar will explore who the most effective collaborators are at the state and community levels, how partnerships can be strengthened, and where State Offices of Rural Health (SORHs) and State Rural Health Associations (SRHAs) can integrate rural elder mistreatment prevention and response into their ongoing work/efforts. Participants will also hear from Trust for America’s Health on its newly released  Elder Mistreatment Prevention Toolkit for Public Health, which offers practical strategies and tools to support cross-sector action.

Webinar objectives:

• Examining how elder mistreatment and abuse manifest in rural communities
• Identifying key collaborators and partners at the state and local levels
• Exploring opportunities for SRHAs and SORHs to integrate elder mistreatment prevention into existing initiatives
• Draw attention to public health tools and frameworks that support coordinated prevention and response 

Participants will gain:

• Practical understandings of collaborative approaches to rural elder mistreatment prevention
• Ideas for integrating elder mistreatment prevention into states’ rural health and aging initiatives
• Tools and resources to support cross-sector coordination at the state and community levels
• Peer learning and dialogue with state rural health, public health, and aging leaders

Registration is required: Please register and complete the registration questions.

Date and Time: Thursday, March 19, 2026 from 3:00–4:00 PM ET

Registration Questions: 

1. Who are the most likely collaborators in a state around this topic? 
2. Are there ways in which SRHA/SORHs can integrate elder abuse prevention and response into their existing work?