Posted on 07/05/2014 9:31:10 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Many Baby Boomers already dread the talk - suggesting their aging parents surrender car keys - but now two geriatric experts say another thorny, family question must be asked of some elderly folks.
Is it time to give up your gun?
In a recently published paper, the two physicians offer a five-point checklist meant to help caregivers assess whether firearms remain safe in the hands and homes of older Americans, particularly if the gun owners are exhibiting unclear thinking or depression.
Just like with some (older) people, its not if you should stop driving, but when, said Dr. Ellen M. Pinholt, a co-author and former chief of geriatric medicine at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. If we find some dementia present in a patient, it can be about when to lock up the weapon or whether we have the family take it away.
(VIDEO-AT-LINK)
But nothing else has really been out there to help families to begin that conversation, added Pinholt, a retired Army colonel who practices medicine in Rapid City, South Dakota. Her recommendations were informed by past home-health visits, including: one grandparent who kept a loaded handgun under a bed, a 97-year-old woman who didnt know how to unload her weapon, and an older firearm owner who appeared confused....
(Excerpt) Read more at nbcnews.com ...
How many incidents involving aged people and firearms have occurred? Now how many incidents involve black men and guns?
Maybe someone is looking at the wrong risk group.
When should Grandpa give up his gun? When his son or daughter inherit it.
I guess it’s a good thing I lost all of my weapons in that terrible boating accident at the deepest part of Trinity Lake.
To bad, so sad, right?
Maybe gramps needs an electronic headphone, encouragement to go from 9mm to .45 ACP, free range time and free ammo and the gov’t to totally leave him the H alone...
I'm not geriatric yet, but the youngest kid and I have had the talk.
I try to give her my keys every time I see her. She won't take 'em. She knows I hate driving.
She does want my grandmother's .38 special though. But that won't get transfered until it's time, just like the keys.
Everyone has a claim on their preferred firearm. Lots have already been handed down through a couple of generations.
One thing for sure... govt ain't getting any of it.
/johnny
/johnny
Hints never hurt.... ;-)
when do older folks don’t need self-defense? there have been great articles posted about older folks using their weapons to defend themselves.
He bought some. He got to borrow it.
When I get it back, he'll include the extra ammo he bought.
I sent it without a case, too. Guess which rifle got a new case ?;)
/johnny
Having kids in the fam who get it are a great comfort...
"Do yourself a favor. First thing, get a firearm.
When the family is able to provide 24-7-365 assurance of coverage and capable of providing safety. I would still keep a fallback option. Give it up? Not likely.
Unfortunately certain questions from child to parent are verboten in my family and always have been unless the parent introduces the topic.My siblings and I were never allowed to ask how much money Daddy made? Or did they have sex before the wedding? Does Daddy still have Ben and Betsy? His names for two shotguns? Do we have funding and contacts for his funeral when that happens? Does he have a will written? We are all in late 50s and no one dares to ask, or at best you get the Silent Treatment.
Grandpa keeps his favorite 10 then gives the rest to the following generations when he pleases. Problem solved.
I’m dealing with the driving issue now, and I can see where this could be a problem in the future.
But the American Medical Association says they don’t even know if I’m a boy or a girl anymore....so I sure ain’t gonna trust a bunch of doctors to handle a complicated issue like this one.
We are all in late 50s and no one dares to ask...”
I understand all too well why you are saying this and IMO it is one of the biggest mistakes anyone, regardless of their age, can make. But I learned this the hard way after dealing with all the paperwork and legal issues after the death of my daughter and my mother.
Right after I completed all their estate issues and could deal with things a little more rationally I put together a loose leaf binder entitled “If I should die before I wake...” It has everything in it from names of utility companies and their phone numbers, who I owe money to, a list of all my possessions and who is to get what, things that could be sold and their value, all my internet passwords, list of who to call and their phone numbers, who to email and their addresses, how to run final reports for my clients, insurance policies, bank accounts, etc.
I glance through it every Saturday morning and update it as necessary. It’s kept on my desk and my son - who also has made his own book at my insistence - knows where to find it.
I have also started another book about my life. Contains some personal information I’m not sure my family really wants to know but it should make for some interesting reading for them.
Parents don’t necessarily trust their children, particularly when it comes to sharing financial information with them. But at least they should leave personal information in an organized form so that winding up their affairs is done in an orderly fashion.
My grandmother has Alzheimers. She has often been uncharacteristically aggressive towards my mother, grabbing her and pinching her, swearing at her and threatening to throw things at her. A neighbour whose husband developed alzheimers said that one day he grabbed her hair and then started hitting her in a demented rage.
I think under those kinds of circumstances, they should have their guns taken off them if they can no longer be trusted to be rational. My grandmother is still living at home for the time being.
One thing that might work is to keep the guns with the old folks under a combination lock. If they can't remember the number, they can't get to the guns. Of course they still could have enough sense to defend themselves from an intruder, but forget the combo - especially under stress.
Seems like a pretty personal thing, and depends on the people involved. (Sort of like school lunches). Too bad the government and their propaganda arm have to make it a public issue.
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