Blog
Hear from experts working to reduce firearm injury
Concealed Ownership: Americans’ Perceived Comfort Sharing Gun Ownership Status with others
This article examining the perceptions of gun ownership in the United States found that older, white Americans and those with pro-gun attitudes are more likely to disclose their gun ownership status.
How Physicians can Reduce Suicide Without Changing Anyone’s Mental Health
Given the high rate of death in those who attempt suicide with firearms, this article reminds healthcare providers to focus their counseling strategies on risk prevention and safety rather than questioning patients on whether or not to have firearms.
Physician Counseling on Firearm Safety: A New Kind of Cultural Competence
This article suggests that physicians should feel comfortable discussing firearm safety with their patients in a culturally competent manner, just as they routinely do with other public health issues.
Effectiveness of Interventions to Promote Safe Firearm Storage
This systematic review found that firearm counseling along with safety device provision can effectively encourage individuals to store their firearms safely.
Improving Firearm Storage Habits: Impact of Brief Office Counseling by Family Physicians
This study found that brief counseling from family physicians can make a significant positive impact on firearm storage practices of their patients.
Effectiveness of Gun-safety Counseling and a Gun Lock Giveaway in a Hispanic Community
This study examining a predominantly Hispanic pediatric clinic found that a brief gun-safety counseling session along with a gun lock giveaway resulted in improved safe gun storage behaviors.
Is Office-based Counseling about Media Use, Timeouts, and Firearm Storage Effective? Results from a Cluster-randomized, Controlled Trial
This randomized control trial found that a brief office-based violence prevention clinical intervention could increase safe firearm storage by families with children.
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, in respect to firearms and public health, prohibits mandatory collection of information on lawful firearm ownership, or possession.
Physicians, Patients, and Firearms: The Courts Say “Yes”
The article explores the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeal's overturn of the Florida's Firearm Owner's Privacy Act, which aimed to stop physicians from discussing firearms with their patient, on the basis of First Amendment rights to freedom of speech.
School-based and Community-based Gun Safety Educational Strategies for Injury Prevention
School-based and community-based programs were not found to improve the likelihood that children will not handle firearms in unsupervised situations in this study, highlighting the need for finding better strategies to educate children and families about firearm safety.
Parental Misperceptions About Children and Firearms
This paper, looking at parents' perceptions of their children's firearm access, found that parents are often unaware of their child's handling of firearms in the home.
Firearms and Dementia: Clinical Considerations
Clinical considerations for physicians when counseling patients with dementia.