• Morgan Schellenberg and Andrew Walters.
• Division of Acute Care Surgery, Department of Surgery, LAC+USC Medical Center, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California.
• Curr Opin Anaesthesiol. 2023 Apr 1; 36 (2): 132136132-136.

Purpose Of ReviewThe global coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) viral outbreak and the rise of the anti-Black racism movement have produced a dual pandemic over the past few years, which has been associated with a dramatic rise in gun violence across the United States. This comprehensive review was performed to examine the current levels of gun violence in the context of these dual pandemics, delineate factors which have synergistically produced this surge in interpersonal violence, and propose future directions.Recent FindingsDual pandemics have mutually contributed to a worsening in many social determinants of health and thereby have had a particularly dramatic impact on many of our most vulnerable patients, including patients of minority races and ethnicities, in terms of interpersonal violence. Firearm injuries are at their highest rate in decades. The challenges in the trauma care of these patients have been compounded by staffing and resource shortages related to the COVID-19 pandemic and attrition of medical workers related to burnout.SummaryConsequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and the anti-Black racism movement have produced a social environment in the United States in recent years where interpersonal violence, especially firearm injuries, have surged. Particularly, during a time of challenged patient care delivery, the medical system struggles to support the increase in trauma volume. A broad approach to improving social determinants of health should be pursued in order to decrease the risk of gun violence from the recent near-historical high levels.Copyright © 2022 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.

25 keywords...

hide…