Final answer:
Unexplained injuries or bruises are a sign of elder abuse that a PCT should recognize. Factors like caregiver depression and financial dependency on the elderly can increase the risk of abuse, which is prevalent and often underreported.
Step-by-step explanation:
A Patient Care Technician (PCT) should recognize unexplained injuries or bruises as a risk factor for elder abuse. The National Center on Elder Abuse highlights signs of mistreatment such as physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, neglect, and financial exploitation. Factors that increase the risk of abuse include caregiver depression, financial dependency on the elder, and a history of the caregiver being abused. Elder abuse prevalence is concerning, with roughly one in ten elderly people surveyed having suffered at least one form of abuse, and it is most often perpetrated by caregivers.