I've been a lurker for awhile, and I know that this post has been brought up 1-2 times in the last 2 years that I've been an RN. So... you grouchy old farts that would rather I'd revive an old post can just stuff a sock in it. I want to gauge opinions based on our CURRENT situation after the shooting yesterday in San Bernadino, CA.
Truth be told, One single caregiver with a concealed carry permit could have shut this couple down before they hit 14 fatalities.
I plan on getting my CC in January, but I know as an RN, should my handgun be discovered, I'll probably lose my license. It will stay in my car when I am at work. If someone wants to carry out mayhem at my workplace, we are ALL sitting ducks. It is not ok or fair. What are your thoughts?
Yeah, no offense, but if I'm ever unlucky enough to be in a situation like that, and discover you have a CC, unless you're ex-military or law enforcement, I plan on getting as far away from you as I can.
Specializes in Palliative, Onc, Med-Surg, Home Hospice.
I have family and friends in law enforcement. two are tactical experts. They will be the first to tell you that a rush of adrenalin is NOT conducive to accuracy of shot. Ask any tactical officer who has been in a shooting situation and they will tell you that they take a lot of care with aiming. They know for sure before they fire who and where they are firing.
I own a gun. I shoot my gun and I am pretty danged accurate. I wouldn't attempt to take out a shooter in a crowded area. Because I know what happens when I have an adrenalin rush.
Of course this isn't what you want to hear, but you did ask for opinions.
Yeah, right, we need a buncha CC Cowboys shooting off more than their mouths in a public area. In the panic of the moment it is much more likely an innocent bystander or your own foot will be an unintended target.
Forget the TV heroics. Play dead instead of be dead.
I think the whole fantasy love affair with guns is the culprit. Too much TV/video games/rap songs/etc that don't show the real carnage. It gets pixelled out because we can't handle the truth. And don't forget the awful smell of blood and guts.
I love nursing more than my safety. As I have said, I will NEVER cc at work unless it becomes legal.I do think that it would be a good idea for our hospitals to consider. They could vet a few employees who have to continue education to remain CC at work perhaps. I think it would be a wise decision.
I've been a lurker for awhile, and I know that this post has been brought up 1-2 times in the last 2 years that I've been an RN. So... you grouchy old farts that would rather I'd revive an old post can just stuff a sock in it. I want to gauge opinions based on our CURRENT situation after the shooting yesterday in San Bernadino, CA.
Truth be told, One single caregiver with a concealed carry permit could have shut this couple down before they hit 14 fatalities.
I plan on getting my CC in January, but I know as an RN, should my handgun be discovered, I'll probably lose my license. It will stay in my car when I am at work. If someone wants to carry out mayhem at my workplace, we are ALL sitting ducks. It is not ok or fair. What are your thoughts?
You may or may not lose your RN license... and you may or may not lose the CCW license if you're caught. It depends upon if you're carrying at a place that's not legal for you to do so. Please remember that many work places may actually allow (or can't disallow) the public from carrying but your EMPLOYER can require you not to.
From a more "tactical" standpoint, yes, it is more difficult to hit small targets like heads. I was taught to shoot "center of mass" if I ever have to shoot someone. I was also taught 2 different "failure to stop" methods. Honestly, I sincerely hope I never have to do that. If I'm ever confronted with an active shooter situation, I'd much rather escape than engage. Engaging the shooter is always my last choice.
One other thing to remember. If you ever discover that I'm carrying, you might be quite surprised that I am... for when I'm carrying, I'm the nicest, meekest, easy-going guy you could ever meet who seems quite alert for someone so laid back. I'm also probably watching your hands and the hands of everyone around me. My gun isn't going to magically leap out of its holster and start blasting away... I probably also know where the exits are, where good cover and concealment are, and where my family is, just in case I have to get them out quickly too.
I grew up in an area where hunting and fishing are considered natural and a way of life. Guns were for safety against predators, because you really could be eaten by what lurked outside in the dark. One simply just does not negotiate†with a hungry animal.
If you've never been raised around the respect for what owning a gun offers you, then I can understand where people come from, who think that guns should be banned.
I think the mentality that guns have no purpose other than some weird fascination as a hobby is what leads to the idea that no one should own a gun.
It all depends upon your perspective.
I would never carry a gun into the workplace. At my hospital, we have Pinkertons who carry guns. They KNOW how to use them if necessary, and I've seen them in action - a gun is the last resort for them, because they are capable of taking you out without a bullet, lol.
You may or may not lose your RN license... and you may or may not lose the CCW license if you're caught. It depends upon if you're carrying at a place that's not legal for you to do so. Please remember that many work places may actually allow (or can't disallow) the public from carrying but your EMPLOYER can require you not to.
From a more "tactical" standpoint, yes, it is more difficult to hit small targets like heads. I was taught to shoot "center of mass" if I ever have to shoot someone. I was also taught 2 different "failure to stop" methods. Honestly, I sincerely hope I never have to do that. If I'm ever confronted with an active shooter situation, I'd much rather escape than engage. Engaging the shooter is always my last choice.
One other thing to remember. If you ever discover that I'm carrying, you might be quite surprised that I am... for when I'm carrying, I'm the nicest, meekest, easy-going guy you could ever meet who seems quite
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Can't fffalert for someone so laid back. I'm also probably watching your hands and the hands of everyone around me. My gun isn't going to magically leap out of its holster and start blasting away... I probably also know where the exits are, where good cover and concealment are, and where my family is, just in case I have to get them out quickly too.
You can protect me anytime.
Someone who carries a weapon, but whose first impulse is MOT to start shooting the place up.
First, where are you going to carry your gun, in a fanny pack?
I have a handgun and rifle, I am
very good with a rifle. But I can tell you, if someone was at work shooting with the kind of weapons these people had, there is no way someone could take them out with a handgun in that situation.
Go to a shooting range and try to quickly get your weapon out and shoot the target in the head. Not so easy. Now if I had the luxury of having my rifle and lining you up in my site, maybe. But I am not military nor do I have that kind of training to accurately shoot someone in that situation.
And you do realize your weapon can be used against you too.
Body armour is great, but they have heads that were likely not covered. A CC with a decent aim could have stopped the massacre.
It's nice to think we all could shoot someone in the head in such a moment but the statistics on lethal encounter proximity and hit ratios according to distance for law enforcement are surprisingly bleak to say the least. Basically, some research indicates that you have to be within 3' of someone to stand a decent chance and a hit ratio of 0-2 years is only 38%. Those are for law enforcement officers, people trained to deal with such a situation. Here is one such study: http://www.theppsc.org/Staff_Views/Aveni/OIS.pdf
It seems like it should be so easy to shoot someone in the head but these people were prepared. Also, because of the frequent active shooter drills, many employees thought what was happening was another drill (you know, because we all read and remember the drill notice memos in our email). So, you can either be a sitting duck or shoot someone during a drill -- the chance you'll actually take out a bad guy is slim to none.
So, no, I do not agree that people should be carrying guns in hospitals (also, this was not a treatment facility but rather a county public resource facility). I do think what needs to be addressed in this country is the "hobby" mentality surrounding tactical gear and M&P grade weaponry. We need the higher capacity clips and bigger rounds and why can't we all have Kevlar vests?!?!?! Waaaaaaaahhh the government needs to stay out of it. Blah.
For what it's worth, a close friend was there and knew the guy that did this. He wished he had his handgun there because he felt so helpless and unsafe. While I was terrified about the fact he was even 50 feet away from what was taking place and I sympathize with his feelings, I really doubt that he would have had a moment of expert marksmanship that would have saved the day. We really need to get over this kind of thinking because there are "all or nothing" implications here. Also, if it sounds like I'm advocating gun control, I am not. I am in California but it's the IE and hunters, fisherman and gun enthusiasts abound here and it's just the culture. But you don't need to shoot a deer or a quail with an AR-15. There would be nothing left of the animal to eat.
Sorry, I'm just raw from all this. We had students in clinical when they were bringing patients in and it's just ugly. But a concealed carry would not have made me feel any better, especially driving home past all these "dark-colored SUVs" that you think are going to try and blow your head off on the 10 freeway (which, statistically, is a way more frequent occurrence than what happened at the Inland Resource Center.
I think the mentality that guns have no purpose other than some weird fascination as a hobby is what leads to the idea that no one should own a gun.
It all depends upon your perspective.
Not necessarily. It's the ridiculous tactical icons that people feel that they are entitled to that really needs to be scaled back. Shotguns and rifles have purposes (and handguns, too, and tactical weapons, in the hands of trained LEOs and military folks) that must be respected. Wanting to be decked out like you're going all Call of Duty on us is really inappropriate and completely disrespects that these are instruments of war. That's where I think the "hobby" mentality that converges with the right to keep and bear arms needs to be reexamined and called out.
I want to gauge opinions based on our CURRENT situation after the shooting yesterday in San Bernadino, CA. 
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Jensmom7, BSN, RN
1,907 Posts
Yeah, no offense, but if I'm ever unlucky enough to be in a situation like that, and discover you have a CC, unless you're ex-military or law enforcement, I plan on getting as far away from you as I can.