TY - JOUR
T1 - The association of handgun ownership and storage practices with safety consciousness
AU - Coyne-Beasley, Tamera
AU - McGee, Kara S.
AU - Johnson, Renee M.
AU - Clayton Bordley, W.
N1 - Copyright:
Copyright 2018 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2002/8/1
Y1 - 2002/8/1
N2 - Background: As with other injury prevention practices, education about safe firearm storage is recommended to prevent injuries to children. Objective: To assess whether parents who are safety conscious in other respects also practice firearm safety. Methods: Data come from responses to a baseline survey administered as part of an intervention study. Participants were consenting adults who brought a child into an emergency department. These analyses were restricted to those parents who had young children (<7 years) and who kept a firearm in their house. A safety consciousness score was developed; participants earned a point for each of 7 home and car safety behaviors they reported practicing. The relationship between safety consciousness with handgun ownership and firearm storage practices was assessed with Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney test. Results: Of the 221 participants, most reported that they keep poisonous substances out of children's reach (92%), always keep children restrained when in cars (90%), have the'telephone number for a poison control center (82%), change smoke alarm batteries annually (73%), keep electrical outlets capped (72%), and keep their tap water temperature at 120°F (49°C) or less (65%). Only 22% reported checking smoke alarm batteries monthly. The median safety score was 4 (mean [SD], 3.99 [1.4]). Fiftysix percent said there was a handgun in their home, 27% reported an unlocked gun, 20% reported a loaded gun, and 7% reported a loaded and unlocked gun. Results were not consistent with safety consciousness being associated with safe firearm storage practices or the absence of a handgun. Conclusion: Compliance with safety practices may not be associated with safe firearm storage.
AB - Background: As with other injury prevention practices, education about safe firearm storage is recommended to prevent injuries to children. Objective: To assess whether parents who are safety conscious in other respects also practice firearm safety. Methods: Data come from responses to a baseline survey administered as part of an intervention study. Participants were consenting adults who brought a child into an emergency department. These analyses were restricted to those parents who had young children (<7 years) and who kept a firearm in their house. A safety consciousness score was developed; participants earned a point for each of 7 home and car safety behaviors they reported practicing. The relationship between safety consciousness with handgun ownership and firearm storage practices was assessed with Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney test. Results: Of the 221 participants, most reported that they keep poisonous substances out of children's reach (92%), always keep children restrained when in cars (90%), have the'telephone number for a poison control center (82%), change smoke alarm batteries annually (73%), keep electrical outlets capped (72%), and keep their tap water temperature at 120°F (49°C) or less (65%). Only 22% reported checking smoke alarm batteries monthly. The median safety score was 4 (mean [SD], 3.99 [1.4]). Fiftysix percent said there was a handgun in their home, 27% reported an unlocked gun, 20% reported a loaded gun, and 7% reported a loaded and unlocked gun. Results were not consistent with safety consciousness being associated with safe firearm storage practices or the absence of a handgun. Conclusion: Compliance with safety practices may not be associated with safe firearm storage.
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U2 - 10.1001/archpedi.156.8.763
DO - 10.1001/archpedi.156.8.763
M3 - Article
C2 - 12144365
AN - SCOPUS:0036705737
VL - 156
SP - 763
EP - 768
JO - American Journal of Diseases of Children
JF - American Journal of Diseases of Children
SN - 2168-6203
IS - 8
ER -