A recent study from the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis found that half of children in a survey of parents were exposed to firearms at home, but that few parents had discussed gun safety with pediatricians.
The small study was published Wednesday in The Journal of Pediatrics. Researchers surveyed 1,246 parents at pediatric practices in Missouri and Illinois for about two months last spring in urban, suburban and rural locales. A little more than one-third — 36 percent — said there were firearms at home, according to a news release.
In addition, 14 percent of parents who didn’t have firearms at home reported their children spent time in gun-owning homes. Of the one-quarter of firearm-owning parents who had at least one loaded weapon at home, 14 percent said children could access the guns.
The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests pediatricians discuss gun safety with parents and says that a house sans guns makes for optimal safety. The organization also wants pediatricians to speak to parents about safe gun storage.
Shootings remain extremely prevalent in the U.S. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that firearm-related incidents killed 2,465 children and adolescents (under age 20) in 2013, the latest available year of data.
“A conversation about firearm safety needs to happen between parents and physicians, but it is not,” study author Dr. Jane M. Garbutt said in the news release. “Physicians are concerned about offending and losing patients.”
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Parents Not Talking to Pediatricians About Gun Safety, Survey Says originally appeared on usnews.com
