Normalizing Secure Firearm Storage Can Save Kids' Lives

Abstract

Half of fatal firearm injuries, now the leading cause of death for Americans under the age of 20, occur in a home. We are asking health coaches and other health promotion professionals to help us prevent these deaths with 4 simple actions. • If you have firearms, always store them securely. • Add secure firearms storage to your safety checklist. • When arranging play dates or parties for children and adolescents, ask whether firearms are stored securely. If an unsecured firearm is in the home, change the venue. • Help normalize asking by encouraging members of your social network to ask too.

Keywords: adolescents; age specific; assault; firearms; guns; safety; specific populations; storage; suicide; young children.