Citation

Hoops K, McCourt A, Crifasi CK. Prev. Med. Rep. 2022; 27: e101811.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.pmedr.2022.101811

PMID

35656203

PMCID

PMC9152792

Abstract

The 5 A's of Firearm Safety Counseling is a novel framework by which clinicians can approach firearm injury prevention counseling. To evaluate this methodology as a tool for clinicians, a single-center, simulation-based randomized controlled trial was performed with clinical trainees in psychiatry, medicine, and pediatrics in an urban quaternary care center. Participants received didactic education on firearm injury epidemiology and evidence-based policies and training on a specific counseling framework, the 5 A's of Firearm Safety Counseling which they then implemented in a simulation setting with standardized patients. Of the 29 participants who were randomized, 28 completed the trial. Most participants were psychiatry trainees (residents or subspecialty fellows). While over 60% of participants were uncomfortable or extremely uncomfortable counseling on firearm injury prior to the interventions, only 4% reported being uncomfortable after receiving education and participating in simulated encounters. There was no significant difference between the quality and content of the counseling provided before and after the didactic-only session. There was a significant difference between the quality and content of the counseling provided before and after the specific training on the 5 A's for Firearm Safety Counseling strategy. The 5 A's for Firearm Safety Counseling is a promising educational tool to improve quality, content, and comfort delivering patient-centered counseling on firearm injury prevention in a simulation-based setting. These findings suggest that further validation in a clinical setting is warranted given there is an urgent need for feasible and effective firearm injury prevention strategies among clinicians.

Language: en

Keywords

Injury prevention; Simulation; Violence prevention; Firearm; Medical education