This study examined elder mistreatment victims’ experiences at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on their COVID-19 awareness and unmet needs. San Francisco Adult Protective Services (APS) caseworkers conducted phone interviews with clients or collaterals (client’s family, trusted other, or service provider) to inquire about clients’ awareness of COVID-19 and unmet needs. Nine-hundred-and-thirty-four (71%) of 1,313 APS’ past clients or their collaterals were interviewed, with 741 (79%) responding positively to COVID-19-awareness questions, and 697 (75%) having no unmet needs. Binary logistic regression with Firth adjusted maximum likelihood estimation method revealed that older persons (p < .05), self-neglectors (p < .05), and victims of neglect (p < .05) were less aware of COVID-19. Unmet needs varied by mistreatment type. Victims of isolation were more likely to have medical needs (p < .05), while victims of emotional abuse were more likely to report loneliness (p < .001). Case notes reflected clients who were well-prepared for the pandemic, versus those who required additional assistance to follow preventative measures of the COVID-19 pandemic to stay home. Although the majority of San Francisco APS’ past clients experienced no unmet needs at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the prolonged length and intensity of the pandemic could have exacerbated this vulnerable group’s situation. Collaboration between service providers is key in assisting victims experiencing unmet needs to live safely in a public health crisis, especially underserved victims of specific ethnic backgrounds.

本研究调查了在 COVID-19 大流行开始时虐待老年受害者的经历，重点关注他们对 COVID-19 的认识和未满足的需求。旧金山成人保护服务 (APS) 的个案工作者与客户或担保人（客户的家人、信任的其他人或服务提供商）进行电话访谈，以询问客户对 COVID-19 的认识和未满足的需求。采访了 1,313 名 APS 过去客户或其抵押品中的 934 名 (71%)，其中 741 名 (79%) 对 COVID-19 意识问题做出了积极回应，697 名 (75%) 没有未得到满足需要。使用 Firth 调整的最大似然估计法进行二元逻辑回归显示，老年人 ( p  < .05)、自我忽视者 ( p  < .05) 和被忽视的受害者 ( p < .05) 不太了解 COVID-19。未满足的需求因虐待类型而异。孤立的受害者更有可能有医疗需求（p  < .05），而情感虐待的受害者更有可能报告孤独感（p < .001)。案例说明反映了为大流行做好充分准备的客户，而不是那些需要额外帮助以遵循 COVID-19 大流行的预防措施才能留在家中的客户。尽管旧金山 APS 过去的大多数客户在 COVID-19 大流行开始时没有遇到未满足的需求，但大流行的持续时间和强度可能会加剧这一弱势群体的处境。服务提供者之间的合作对于帮助需求未得到满足的受害者在公共卫生危机中安全生活至关重要，尤其是特定种族背景服务不足的受害者。