Issue Brief: Older Women Living with Disabilities Experiencing Intimate Partner Violence

This is because women disabilities, 51% of women who identify as with disabilities are more likely to be Blind or Hard of Hearing or Deaf have dependent on fixed incomes and government experienced IPV in their lifetime and 53% of benefits as their primary source of income women with mobility-related disabilities have (Abbas, 2023). [...] Financial and Economic Security Older women with disabilities are more likely to be living in poverty compared to older In 2014, Statistics Canada found that 1 in 5 women without disabilities and older men, (22%) of women with disability reported that making it difficult to comfortably meet basic they experienced emotional or financial needs of housing and food, and critical care abuse by a curren. [...] Currently, data on the work For older women who are survivors of IPV, the experiences of those living with disabilities in abuse itself has created barriers to Canada is limited to the ages of 20 to 54 employment. [...] Retirement itself can also be a risk factor for older women experiencing abuse because Although there is a lack of data about the it increases social isolation and has been seen employment status of older women with to have a strong correlation with declining disabilities, there is data about the physical and mental health (Sheppard and employment status of older women in general. [...] Older women and knowledge on IPV experiences, barriers, with disabilities are often turned away from and risk factors of older women survivors with shelters due to the lack of appropriate disabilities is needed.