Suicide and violence prevention: Parent education in the emergency department

Objective: To determine prospectively whether parental receipt of injury pr evention education is associated with new action limiting access to lethal means and if so, what action was taken for which means. Method: Prospective follow-up of 103 adults whose children made an emergency department visit for mental health assessment or treatment. Record review assessed whether h ospital staff provided injury prevention education. Logistic regression was used to determine the likelihood of new caretaker action limiting access t o the following potentially lethal means: firearms, alcohol, prescription m edications, and over-the-counter medications. Results: Significant associat ions were found between exposure to injury prevention education and action to limit access (adjusted adds ratio = 3.6, 95% confidence interval = 1.1-1 2.1, p= .04). Five of 8 adults whose households contained firearms took new action to limit access after injury prevention education, whereas none of the 7 firearm-owning families who did not receive injury prevention educati on took new action to limit firearm access. Similar patterns were seen for other means. Adults more often chose to lock up rather than dispose of leth al means. Conclusions: Injury prevention education should be provided to pa rents during child/adolescent emergency department mental health-related vi sits. Potential for violence prevention is real because parents do take new action to limit access to lethal means when means restriction education is provided.