This abuse includes physical assault, threats of assault, neglect, financial or other exploitation, abandonment, sexual abuse, and psychological abuse. Case histories and letters from relatives gathered by the author since 1980 suggest 16 factors that suggest the existence of abuse. Observers of the abuse have variously informed the police or others, intervened, or ignored the situation. A 1983 survey of social work professionals also found that two-thirds of hospital-based social workers reported the abuse to their line managers, as did half of those in charge of residential homes for elderly people. The survey also indicated that elder abuse exists in many parts of the United Kingdom, that lack of available services does not appear to be a contributory factor, and that senior managers of institutions are often unaware of abuse because it is not reported. 20 references.