Safer Storage Safer Homes An Inpatient Pediatric Lethal Means Counseling Pilot Trial
NCT Number: NCT06479889
Status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING
Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
Phases: NA
Conditions: Firearm Injury|Hospitalizations Psychiatric
Interventions: BEHAVIORAL: Guardians receiving counseling + lock
Sponsor: Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Sex: ALL
Age: ADULT, OLDER_ADULT
Enrollment: 180
Study Design: Allocation: NA|Intervention Model: SINGLE_GROUP|Masking: NONE|Primary Purpose: PREVENTION
Start Date: 2024-08
Completion Date: 2025-12

Summary:
Firearm injuries are the leading cause of death for American youth. Strikingly, firearm suicide among adolescents is growing faster than other groups. Lethal means counseling is standard of care, however, infrequently occurs despite pediatricians recognizing the importance. Lack of time, topic discomfort, and inadequate resources for families are commonly reported barriers to counseling. By addressing these factors, we can improve counseling with the ultimate goal of increasing safe storage and reducing firearm injuries in youth.

Children admitted in acute mental health crises while awaiting psychiatric hospital placement are a population at greater risk of suicide. We plan to implement a pilot intervention to offer secure storage counseling and storage device distribution to families of behavioral health patients who indicate firearm ownership on initial screening. The goal of this project is to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of firearm secure storage counseling and device provision in the inpatient setting.

Primary Outcome Measures: Secure Storage Device Uptake, The proportion of eligible families who take at least 1 storage device (cable locks or lock boxes). The numerator is defined as the number of guardians who take a firearm secure storage device when offered and the denominator is defined as the number of families included in the study., 1 day (Assessed at Initial survey)
Secondary Outcome Measures: Secure Storage Device Usage, The proportion of eligible families who self-report using the chosen device at time of 3-month follow up survey. This will be assessed via the survey question "Are you using any of the device(s) to lock a firearm?" with a dichotomous "Yes/No" response option., one month|Feasibility of follow up, Feasibility of completing a follow up survey with parents within 1 month after the intervention measured by the proportion of guardian who complete the survey in its entirety either electronically or by phone., one month|Acceptability of intervention, Acceptability will be measured using the Acceptability Intervention Measure, a 4-item instrument measuring the acceptability of an intervention on a 5-point Likert scale (Completely Disagree-Completely Agree)., one month
Other Outcome Measures: Feasibility of enrollment, Feasibility of enrolling participants measured by the proportion of patient guardians approached who were enrolled. The numerator is defined as the number of guardians who are enrolled at the initial hospitalization. The denominator will be the total number of guardians approached., Throughout the study, approximately one year|Secure firearm storage, Self-report at two time points based on the survey question, "To the best of your knowledge, are all the firearms where your child lives stored locked, unloaded and separate from ammunition?", one month