Injury prevention : journal of the International Society for Child and Adolescent Injury Prevention
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Injuries from small arms are of concern internationally. The health perspective is an emerging aspect of international work to reduce these injuries. This aspect has been evident in US firearm injury prevention work for over a decade, exhibited by strong statements from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) to remove firearms from children's environments. ⋯ US pediatricians continue to adopt policies promoting gun injury prevention. The practices and attitudes of pediatricians may be important for public education strategies regarding firearm injury prevention in the US and internationally.
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Hospital emergency departments are common recruitment sites for injury studies. Yet recruitment method details, capture rates and response fractions are not consistently reported. As privacy legislation increasingly impinges on research activity, these parameters become even more important. The authors describe their experience with recruitment via emergency departments and outline subsequent adjustments to the recruitment approach. ⋯ Recruitment of injury research participants via hospital emergency departments is challenging, particularly where authorities require an intermediary to make the initial contact. Removal of some constraints imposed by privacy legislation would considerably simplify recruitment and enhance scientific rigour in conducting epidemiological research.
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To examine the size and composition of the privately held firearm stock in the US; and to describe demographic patterns of firearm ownership and motivations for ownership. ⋯ The US population continues to contain at least one firearm for every adult, and ownership is becoming increasingly concentrated. Long guns are the most prevalent type of gun in the US but handgun ownership is widespread. Ownership demographic patterns support findings of previous studies.
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Review
The National Violent Death Reporting System: an exciting new tool for public health surveillance.
The US does not have a unified system for surveillance of violent deaths. This report describes the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS), a system for collecting data on all violent deaths (homicides, suicides, accidental firearms deaths, deaths of undetermined intent, and deaths from legal intervention, excluding legal executions) in participating states. ⋯ Currently, 17 US states participate in the NVDRS; the intention is for the NVDRS to become a truly national system, representing all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the US territories. This report describes the history of the NVDRS, provides an overview of how the NVDRS functions, and describes future directions.