Posted on 07/09/2013 9:40:31 PM PDT by Tailgunner Joe
Older men are at high risk of suicide, and they're far more likely to kill themselves if they have access to firearms.
Doctors should ask relatives of older people with depression or cognitive problems if there are guns in the home, much as they might ask about whether it's time to take away the car keys, an academic paper says.
"There's been so much attention to the role of physicians and the safety of young children when there are guns in the home," says Marshall Kapp, a professor and director of the Center for Innovative Collaboration in Medicine and Law at Florida State University, and author of the paper. "We really haven't seen much discussion in the physicians' role regarding older patients."
For decades, pediatricians have asked parents about guns in the home and safe storage methods, in an effort to reduce accidental deaths and suicides among children and teenagers. But there are no similar physician policies for adults.
With older adults, "we don't think about prevention and safety the way we would with children," Kapp told Shots. "An older person who is seriously compromised by mental disorders is in many respects as helpless and vulnerable and dependent as a child would be."
Men are far more likely to commit suicide than are women, and are more likely to use firearms. Higher rates of gun ownership correlate with higher suicide rates. That's one reason why public health officials look at firearms access as a possible means of preventing suicides.
Kapp's paper, which was published in Annals of Internal Medicine, focuses on reducing the suicide risk in older adults.
But doctors might need to start asking if middle-aged men have a gun cabinet, too.
Suicide rates among middle-aged men have risen over the past decade, from 21.5 to 27.3 per 100,000 from 1999 to 2010. That rivals the rate among white men over 65, of 30 per 100,000. White men over 85 have the highest suicide rate of any group, at 47 per 100,000.
Researchers say it's unclear why older men are more apt to kill themselves. It could be risk factors such as social isolation and lack of coping skills, or easier access to lethal means.
Kapp thinks it will soon become "prudent practice" for physicians to ask about guns in older patients' homes, but no medical organizations have proposed such a policy. It would also mean that family members may have to act, which can be difficult, as anyone who has dealt with an older parent and the issue of driving can attest.
And talking about guns with patients and their families can be politically dicey.
Last year Florida passed a law, dubbed the "Docs vs. Glocks" law, restricting doctor-patient discussions about guns. But an appeals court upheld the doctors' right to discuss gun safety. Other states have considered similar laws, but haven't enacted them.
Its “Prudent Practice” to never tell a MD anything more than whats ailing you..
They can ask... and I'll just say "nope".
I get my medical care at the VA here in Florida. I went to the Urgent Care clinic on Monday to get some antibiotics to stop a chronic cough and congestion lingering too long from a head cold. In the triage interview, the medical tech asked me if I owned a gun or had access to one at home. This is the first time I had ever been asked that at the VA. I did not respond about the gun and just insisted I was there to get my chest issues relieved. They didn’t ask the question again but I’m sure they wrote in my chart, “Gun nut job”.
i’d start asking them about their guns, and start writing down their answers for my files.
i would start to ask them about all the iatrogenic deaths of patients they’ve caused over the years. you wanna see a doctor clam up real quick, go there.
it robs the doctors from being able to deny care and write end of life orders for these men. just not fair.
There, fixed it. Of course, there's the 'getting paid' for the various loops of unnecessary tests, misdiagnoses, and mistreatment, followed by the eventual throwing up of hands.
If what you have is fairly standard (such as injury, heart disease, or an infection), the medical model works well (albeit its preventative measures do need help, particularly in nutrition and physical therapy). Beyond that, best don't get sick.
The Pediatricians are asking kids if there is guns in the home. The kids are being tricked to rat their parents out. The EMR electronic medical record is the final nail in our privacy coffin. They will be able to data mine and easily find out who has guns so Obama’s new army will pay gun owners a visit.
NOTE: Click on the link and read the whole thing.
Stepping back in time to January 2013:
Quote:
http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/obama-asks-doctors-help-deal-guns_696121.html
“Obama Asks Doctors to Help Deal With Guns”
11:56 AM, JAN 16, 2013 • BY DANIEL HALPER
SNIPPET: “According to a background briefer provided by the White House, President Barack Obama is asking doctors to help deal with guns. Here’s the relevant passage:
PRESERVE THE RIGHTS OF HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS TO PROTECT THEIR PATIENTS AND COMMUNITIES FROM GUN VIOLENCE: We should never ask doctors and other health care providers to turn a blind eye to the risks posed by guns in the wrong hands.”
Speaking as a physician, I can’t say that I agree with you. The only time it’s truly relevant whether a patient has a gun in the home is when they’ve been having suicidal thoughts, are becoming demented and aggressive/delusional, or becoming increasingly violent for a number of reasons.
A doctor can’t “make” you get rid of anything, but the suggestion that family members store away guns in an suicidal patient is just common sense. Or a demented patient who believes that his wife is cheating on him, that others are out to get him, and sees the mailman as treatening.
I’ve seen thousands of patients who have survived suicide attempts. Almost all of them are grateful that they did and started getting treatment for depression. The odds of surviving a suicide attempt with a gun are infintecimally small, and those who do probably wished that they hadn’t from time to time, as well. It makes sense for the individual and for the individual’s family to have the conversation on whether it’s best to put the guns away for awhile.
A gun is a tool. When one loses the capacity to use that tool effectively or safely, it’s time to talk about putting that tool away and rehabing to the point that it can be used safely again, if indeed that is the case.
I have one vet who I saw several years ago who told me that if I hadn’t pulled he and his wife aside and asked about the guns that he had planned on shooting himself when he came home from the clinic. He has thanked me time and time again when I see him again for the chance to spend time with his grandkids. That to me is reason enough.
Depression is a disease and should be taken seriously. It doesn’t mean you strip someone’s constitutional rights away, but it’s worth at least a discussion about safety.
Suicide is indeed a problem in older men. screening for depression, especially in those who have a history of substance abuse or few social supports, is important.
But I worked in Oklahoma, so asking if a man had a gun in his home was like asking if he had a car, or a television: Everyone had a gun. (reminds me of the line in “Miss Congenality”: “this is Texas. Even my Hairdresser has a gun”)
I am eagerly awaiting the question.
Pediatricians have not asked if guns are in the home for effing decades
10 years or so tops
I tell them to kiss my ass in a nice southern way
My docs being of my culture wouldn’t ask such crap
They don’t have to
I personally believe it’s none of the doc’s damn bizness .......unless they are hunting partners
There is a “payment” for state assisted suicide. “The Man” just don’t want to lose his cut.....
The government knows they have pissed off a large number of “old” citizens. These people will most likely hesitate the least to cap your a$$ because they have nothing to lose and the government is freaked out that it is the likely target.
The answer is NO!
The reaction to such a question, might range from getting a laughing fit, and calling the doctor a clown, to getting up and walking out, to informing the doctor that question is none of his business, to, depending on the hidden rage within the questionee.
Last time my V.A. supplied, ‘red-dot and all Dr. Boombahtz’, had a question, it was “Was I in fear of becoming homeless?” I had to laugh. I’ve not used a credit card in over 30 years. I pay cash, or I don’t buy it. My bills are those associated with the time-tested three basic necessities. So, I had to laugh!
If you are a gun owner the best response is to lie and say no. If you tell the truth your computerized Obamacare profile will list you as a gun owner. If you refuse to answer or tell the doctor its none of his business you will go down as a combative gun owner. Me, I’ll just lie and say no.
They can ask, but they should not expect an honest answer. The government is not our friend. Under ObamaCare, they will have access to our medical information in the same way as the IRS has access to our financial information. I’m sure there are strong protocols in place to protect our privacy, just as there are with the IRS, which is why I will take personal responsibility for protecting my privacy. I will not tell my doctor anything I do not want Obama’s minions to know.
Fortunately, at the moment, I have no mental health issues. If any arise, I’ll have to figure out how to address them without giving a hostile government leverage over my basic human rights.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.