Citation

Hoops KEM, Crifasi C. Prev. Med. 2019; 124: 29-32.

Affiliation

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of Health Policy and Management, Baltimore, MD, United States of America.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.ypmed.2019.04.020

PMID

31047911

Abstract

This study characterizes the current firearm-related anticipatory guidance practices of pediatricians-in-training and the factors affecting those practices. In this study of Pediatric residents in the Mid-Atlantic region, surveys were distributed to 189 trainees at three hospitals. Eighty-one responses were collected between June 2017 and March 2018. The survey gathered information about the residents' values related to firearms, firearm-specific counseling practices, barriers to providing counseling, and educational needs related to firearms. The residents surveyed overwhelmingly agreed (96%) that physicians have a responsibility to counsel patients on the risks posed by firearms. However, most (63%) never provide firearm-related counseling or do so in only 1-5% of well-child visits. Their unfamiliarity with safe storage devices contributes to a lack of comfort providing counseling. For pediatricians to provide potentially lifesaving counseling on firearm safety, they must be well-versed in the subject and feel comfortable and confident in doing so. Educational interventions addressing physician self-efficacy are necessary to accomplish this. There is an urgent need to develop a comprehensive firearm safety education program for physicians and trainees to improve firearm counseling.

Copyright © 2019. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Language: en

Keywords

Firearm; Gun injury prevention; Pediatric injury prevention