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Offer these interventions to help prevent suicide by firearm

Current Psychiatry. 2016 May;15(5):e1-e3
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Additionally, firearms in the hands of children ought to include close monitoring by a responsible, sober adult. Keeping guns in locked storage is especially important for preventing suicide in children. Despite suicide being less frequent among younger people than in adults, taking steps to avoid 1,000 child suicides each year in the United States is a valuable intervention.


Conclusion

Specific inquiry, overt discussion, and face-to-face counseling about gun safety can be a life-saving aspect of psychiatric intervention. With such recommendations and education, psychiatrists can play a productive role in reducing firearm-related suicide.


Disclosures

The authors report no financial relationship with any company whose products are mentioned in this article or with manufacturers of competing products.