Elder Abuse Prevention Interventions Program - Elder abuse and self-neglect (EASN) affect 10%-29% of community-dwelling older adults annually, yet most cases go unreported, leading to premature mortality, worsened health, and costly health system utilization. Despite recognition as a public health crisis, few prevention-focused, evidence-informed interventions have been implemented in real-world settings. Affordable senior housing, home to over 1.6 million older adults in the US, presents an underused platform for prevention and early intervention, offering consistent engagement, trust-building, and timely support. The proposed project, a partnership between JASA and the RISE Collaborative, will adapt, implement, and evaluate RISE@JASA, an elder justice intervention integrated into JASA’s housing-based Interdisciplinary Team (IDT) model at Casa Celina, a Senior Affordable Rental Apartments (SARA) site in the Bronx. The RISE model, proven to reduce recurrence of Adult Protective Services referrals by more than 50%, combines restorative justice, motivational interviewing, teaming, and supported decision-making to enhance safety, connection, and autonomy. RISE@JASA will expand this framework by embedding JASA’s IDT care coordination, residential service coordinators, legal services, and a peer specialist directly into housing operations. Using a matched comparison JASA housing site, the project will employ a mixed-methods evaluation to assess feasibility, fidelity, and effectiveness, tracking outcomes such as EASN occurrence and recurrence, resident engagement, service utilization, referrals, satisfaction, and health indicators. If successful, RISE@JASA will deliver a replicable, scalable model for preventing and addressing EASN in senior affordable housing nationwide. Findings will be shared with housing, aging, and elder justice networks through publications, trainings, and a capstone convening, advancing the ACL’s goal of developing and testing innovative approaches to elder maltreatment prevention among populations at elevated risk.
