The main duties of medical providers are to protect the interests of vulnerable elderly patients by

 Knowing the statistics, morbidity, mortality, and red flags of elder abuse, neglect, financial exploitation, and self-neglect

 Screening for these conditions in inpatient, outpatient, and long-term care settings

 Performing appropriate assessment histories and physicals

 Keeping the elder safe through appropriate interventions including reporting to appropriate governmental agencies and ensuring medical treatment

In cases of elder abuse, neglect, exploitation, and self-neglect, the tension between the principles of autonomy and beneficence is important

 Autonomy should be respected and overrides the requirement that the medical provider protects or acts beneficently regarding the elder. To care for and protect themselves, the elder must be able to both make and carry out decisions about their needs and safety. To make decisions about their needs and safety, they must be able to appreciate their circumstances. They must also be able to take goal-directed action toward carrying out these decisions. The autonomy interest of the elder with capacity to take care of and protect themselves allows them to make decisions that seem unwise to others

 When the elder is unable to take care of or protect themselves, and so is unable to exercise their autonomy, beneficence requires that the medical provider work with the appropriate government agencies to help protect the interests of that vulnerable elder

 The autonomy interests of the vulnerable elder may be furthered by the use of advance directives such as durable powers of attorney for health care, directives to physicians, and other durable powers of attorney. The agents or surrogates established in such documents have a fiduciary duty to the elder and so are required to carry out their wishes if known and act in their best interests otherwise. When this trust is violated, the vulnerable elder may need the assistance of the medical provider to oppose the agent or surrogate. The medical provider has a duty of beneficence toward the patient, and this requires them to put the interests of the patient before the interests of the agent or a facility