A great diversion is to ask a question as an answer. When they ask about firearm ownership, ask them, “if I were ever to buy a gun, would it be best to get training on how to use one. Heck, you could have three full gun cabinets at home. It’s still a good rhetorical question. And besides, you could even continue to steer the conversation in the direction of a gun you are “thinking of getting”, causing him to naturally assume that if you ever did it would be your first gun.
This sort of thing is actually kind of fun. I’ve done it regarding other subjects.
Don't be half-hearted, ask him to recommend where you should go for training. He's the expert with the MD. he should know.