Integrating Firearm Injury Prevention Into Health Care

The staggering number of deaths and emergency department visits caused by firearm injuries has only grown with time. Costs associated with firearm related injuries amount to over a billion dollars annually in the United States alone, not including physician charges and postdischarge costs.

To address this epidemic, in April of 2022, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine's Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice, in collaboration with Northwell Heath and the PEACE Initiative, brought together firearm injury prevention thought leaders to explore how health systems can integrate interventions for firearm injury prevention into routine care for the purpose of improving the health of patients and communities. The workshop speakers discussed strategies for firearm injury and mortality prevention and its integration into routine care. Speakers also explored facilitators and barriers to implementation strategies, and how health systems might work to overcome those barriers.