TABLE 2.

Suicide-Related EM-Relevant Firearm Injury Research Questions

Directly Relevant to ED Clinical Practice 1.What are the knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs of key stakeholders (e.g. healthcare providers, families, patients) that may facilitate or impede lethal means restriction for suicidal patients? 2.What are the consequences (if any) of firearm screening among suicidal patients? Does it dissuade them from seeking care? 3.Is failure to screen for firearm access in a patient with suicide risk malfeasance or breach of duty by the physician? 4.How does, and how should, knowing that a potentially suicidal patient has a gun at home influence disposition decision? (What should the standard of practice be?) 5.What are barriers and facilitators to ED provider counseling of suicidal patients (and family members) about lethal means? 6.What factors increase the acceptability of lethal means restriction for at-risk patients? E.g., with whom are at-risk persons most comfortable temporarily storing their firearms? 7.To what extent do ED interactions with suicide hotlines/other community partners affect patients’ lethal means access post discharge?

General EM-Relevant Research 8.What factors, including online and in-person social networks, affect initial suicide method choice and method substitution? 9.What is the epidemiology of firearm suicide? Specifically: how does gun ownership, storage, gun origin, etc., vary across various demographic groups (e.g. youth, veterans, etc.)?* 10.What is the effect of firearm access restriction on future suicide behavior?*