Suicide and Violence Prevention: Parent Education in the Emergency Department

• NCJ Number: 177520
• Journal: Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Volume: 38 Issue: 3 Dated: March 1999 Pages: 250-255
• Author(s): M J P Kruesi; J Grossman; J M Pennington; P J Woodward; D Duda; J G Hirsch
• Date Published: 1999
• Length: 6 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

A prospective follow-up study focused on whether parents' receipt of injury prevention education is associated with new action limiting access to lethal means, using prospective follow-up information on the actions of 103 adults whose children made a visit to a rural emergency department for mental health assessment or treatment.

Abstract

The hospital was located in the midwest. The children were ages 6-19 and had received mental health assessments, usually for exhibiting high-risk behavior such as suicidal or homicidal threats, running away from home, or other out-of-control behavior between September 1995 and April 1996. The research used a review of records to determine whether hospital staff provided injury prevention education to the parents. A structured follow-up telephone interview was conducted with the parents an average of 2 months after the visit. The research used logistic regression to analyze parents' new actions limiting access to firearms, alcohol, prescription medications, and over-the-counter medications. Results revealed significant associations between exposure to injury prevention education and action to limit access. Five of eight adults whose households contained firearms took new action to limit access after injury prevention education, whereas none of the seven firearm-owning families who did not receive such education took new action to limit firearm access. Similar patterns occurred for the other lethal means. Results also revealed that adults more often chose to lock up rather than dispose of lethal means. Findings indicate that injury prevention education should be provided to parents during child and adolescent visits to emergency departments for mental health reasons. The potential for violence prevention is real in these circumstances, because parents who receive such education do take new action to limit access to lethal means. Tables and 36 references