Elderly ignored and treated as 'objects' in care system The signatories are backing a new "Dignity Code" drawn up by the National Pensioners" Convention - which represents elderly groups around the country - setting out how pensioners should expect to be treated in their homes, residential care, and the NHS. It is hoped the code will be on display in every care home, doctors" surgery and hospital ward in the country and made a central plank of nurses" and care workers" training. It follows a string of scandals involving the abuse of the elderly and disabled and comes at a time when funding of elderly care is under more intense scrutiny than ever before. Around 400,000 people in England live in care homes while more than two million older people overall are need of care in some form. The residential care market is worth an estimated £14 billion a year of which almost £10 billion goes to private care homes. Earlier this month a committee of MPs warned that frail elderly people were being "passed like parcels" between different agencies in a fragmented and chaotic care system in desperate need of reform. The letter, signed by 21 public figures including the heads of Age UK, the Royal College of Nursing, the TUC and the care regulator the Care Quality Commission, demands an end not just to extreme cases of abuse but also everyday practices which diminish the dignity of older people. "In extreme cases, there have been instances of abuse and neglect, but there are many examples of older people being spoken about as if they were not there, deprived of basic privacy or denied respect for their hygiene or personal appearance," it adds. At times people have been refused treatment on grounds of age while others have been subject to unnecessary medication or restraints. This has to stop. The new code, which is published today, calls on nurses and carers always to obtain consent for treatments and demands that elderly people are allowed to "speak for themselves" either directly, or in cases where this is no longer possible, through a friend or relative. Significantly, it requires carers to address older people formally rather than by their first name, unless they are invited to do otherwise. Dot Gibson, general secretary of the National Pensioners" Convention said: "Much of what the Dignity Code calls for is to treat individuals as human beings, rather than as second-class citizens who can have their wishes and feelings ignored and overlooked. Providing someone with personal dignity must be a basic requirement in any care setting and there must be no excuse for denying someone their right to be treated with respect. Gary FitzGerald, chief executive of the charity Action on Elder Abuse, one of the signatories, said standards of respect for elderly people in care had deteriorated so badly over the last 10 years that neglect is now being taken for granted. When you are in an environment that degrades you every day in the little things, that you can't escape from, that is death by a thousand cuts, that just destroys who you are, it is so humiliating or degrading, that's what we have to deal with. Dr Peter Carter, chief executive of the Royal College of Nursing, another of the signatories said: "Nurses can and should be leaders in developing the right attitudes towards older people and their needs and dignity. However, this is also a wider issue, and it must be recognised that as a nation, the population is getting older and our attitudes have to recognise and embrace this change. Liz Kendall, the shadow care minister, said: "Healthcare is becoming increasingly specialised, with the risk that services too often focus on the medical and technical aspects of treatment and not on the basic human elements of care. We must ensure the quality and experience of care for older people is a top priority for the NHS. Paul Burstow, the care minister, said: "Older people play an incredibly important role in society and are the linchpins of many families and communities. Ensuring they are listened to, respected and protected in later life is the least we can all do in return. By placing my signature alongside those of others I want to send a clear sign that government is determined to lead the way in making sure all those things happen. But last night Mr Burstow also warned that serious cases of abuse were in danger of being overlooked because regulators are swamped with trivial reports of welfare issues from staff obsessed with watching their own backs. He cited examples of how a care assistant who fell asleep on duty on one occasion was reported as a "safeguarding issue" as was a torn piece of carpet. "Those systems only work if they are used properly and the people running them do not become bogged down investigating cases that have nothing to do with protecting people from abuse," he said. This is about common sense, trusting front line professionals to use their judgment so that the most serious cases of abuse don't get lost amongst cases that should never have been referred in the first place. Later this month the findings of a new joint commission on dignity in care involving NHS and council leaders and Age UK are due to be published.