Graduate Psychiatric Nurse's Training on Firearm Injury Prevention

Psychiatric nurses should be uniquely positioned for helping to prevent firearm suicides and homicides among the mentally ill. This study assessed the prevalence of firearm injury prevention training in graduate psychiatric nursing training programs through a three-wave mail survey of program directors. Most (87%) of the directors reported that they had not seriously thought about providing firearm injury prevention training. Almost half (48%) reported they did not routinely screen patients for firearm ownership. In addition, most (66%) thought that the American Psychiatric Nurses Association (APNA) should provide curriculum guidelines regarding firearm injury prevention training. Leadership is needed by the APNA to help reduce firearm violence in the mentally ill.