My mother of 74 yrs old, who lives in florida, was threatened by her daughter and grandson not to answer the phone or door for 3 days. She was left in her apartment without and food. Her daughter (who doen't live with her) has misued her checking account by draining her account dry and causing bounced checks, eviction notices and electric notices to disconnect. My sister also forged my mom's signature to obtain credit cards and a cell phone. Mom is left financially dispaired. I live in south carolina and want to have my mom live with me. What can I do about this abuse and how can I take proper care of my mom here. I don't know a thing about the florida elder laws, medicare/medicaid or how to obtain a durable power of attorney or where to go. Please help me. Mom speaks only Spanish and from what her doctor says, she might have early on-set of Alzheimers.

I can understand that this is a stressful situation for you. You need to speak with an attorney in Florida that can help you get your mother the help she needs. You can locate one through the attorney locator on Lawinfo's home page at http://www.lawinfo.com/. Some do offer free consultations.

Florida's Vulnerable and Special Needs Adults Hotline: 800-962-2873 The Adult Protective Services program, mandated by Chapter 415, Florida Statutes, is a system of specialized social services directed toward protecting vulnerable adults who are unable to manage their own affairs, from further occurences of abuse, neglect, or exploitation. After a report has been called into the Hotline it is referred to the Protective Investigations Unit closest to the location of the victim. The Unit office then dispatches a Protective Investigator within 24 hours. The investigator contacts the alleged victim and assess the immediate risk of second party abuse, neglect, or exploitation.