Firearms

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I thought this was an interesting discussion that happened to pop-up on a certain social media site. How many of you conceal carry? And what do you think about prohibiting firearms on hospital property?

I think with the increasing violence these days, safety is a major concern for everyone. How do you protect yourself and still abide by the rules set by your facility?

Do you carry Mace then? I feel that one can never be too careful these days.

I always consider these comments somewhere between amusing and ridiculous since the country's overall crime rate is much lower than it was 30 years ago.

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Here we go again.... I do carry at times when I feel it is warranted.

You can put all the gun laws in place that you want, but the CRIMINALS are not going to follow them, so you are only hurting those that want to carry legally to protect themselves. Criminals or someone with bad intent doesn't care if a hospital or other facility has a sign banning weapons on the property, when are people going to get this?!

And when are we as a country going to understand that we do NOT have a gun problem we have a mental health problem in the US!!!

Annie

the evidence from the rest of the first world says otherwise.

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Specializes in geriatrics.

As a Canadian, the idea of owning a gun is totally foreign to me. I don't give it a second thought. If you are carrying a weapon, be prepared to use it. No thank you.

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As a Canadian, the idea of owning a gun is totally foreign to me. I don't give it a second thought. If you are carrying a weapon, be prepared to use it. No thank you.

Just an aside, not all Americans who *own* guns *conceal carry* them.

The guns my husband and I own are for hunting/self defense against large critters that like to attempt to eat our livestock and/or pets. One or two were gifted to us in a will.

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Specializes in geriatrics.

Yes I'm sure you don't all conceal carry guns. I don't think that. But the mindset and the values are just different with respect to guns. I find it interesting because I've lived in major cities....some bad neighborhoods too, and I've never carried mace or a gun.

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My hospice manager bought us all pepper spray. I keep it in my purse.

I don't have a conceal carry permit but we do have lots of firearms here in our home - mostly in our locked large gun-safe but we keep one revolver at the bedside.

My husband and son just returned from shooting targets - getting ready to go deer hunting tomorrow. I don't hunt but all my kids do including my daughter.

I don't think I'd take one to work.

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Specializes in Critical Care.

I own firearms but I don't think I would take one to work based on experience. The main thing to consider is that concealed carry at work in a hospital doesn't necessarily produce a safer environment, in a study of ER shootings from 2000 to 2011, 23% of the guns involved were taken from either security guards or concealed carrying staff. While situations do occur where a 'well armed public' might be able to limit the damage (ie mass shootings), almost all are unlikely to be prevented with a gun since they consist of a single cluster of shots and that's it.

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Specializes in Critical Care.
Here we go again.... I do carry at times when I feel it is warranted.

You can put all the gun laws in place that you want, but the CRIMINALS are not going to follow them, so you are only hurting those that want to carry legally to protect themselves. Criminals or someone with bad intent doesn't care if a hospital or other facility has a sign banning weapons on the property, when are people going to get this?!

I've never understood this rationale. Someone who drives over the speed limit clearly doesn't care about what the legal speed limit is, should we just do away with speed limits? Someone who robs houses clearly doesn't care that it's illegal, should we just do away with the law that says it's illegal to rob houses?

And when are we as a country going to understand that we do NOT have a gun problem we have a mental health problem in the US!!!

Annie

We have a mental health problem in the US, but in addition to that we also have the problem of making relatively little effort to keep people who have a history of violent crime in addition to untreated mental illness from having easy access to firearms. More specifically, we have a problem of a major lobbying group that has successfully dismantled a long list of laws that were actually extremely reasonable. I own firearms and as a result feel a responsibility to make sure firearms aren't a blight on our society, I've never understood why the NRA is so set on undermining responsible gun ownership.

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Specializes in Psychiatry, Forensics, Addictions.

I conceal carry, but I would never do so on hospital property.

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Specializes in Critical Care, Med-Surg, Psych, Geri, LTC, Tele,.
Would you believe attempt a "therapeutic hold"? :yes:

We were instructed to crouch and cover our vulnerable areas. I forget the name of our training. It was not CPI, which allows defensive blocks.

Thankfully, we were allowed to implement restraints prn DTS or DTO. And thankfully, we were in a locked down facility with awesome techs.

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Specializes in Cardiology, Cardiothoracic Surgical.

Hmm....I was and am all for CC (those of you that do it) but I've definitely got an issue with people that don't practice regularly and don't understand their guns.

I was on the range one day at a women's shooting clinic, and noticed a member next to me was having issues even loading her magazine. The instructor was helping her, but she still struggled to load and hold her firearm properly. She'd had her CC permit and this gun for awhile. I wondered why she didn't have something smaller and easier to load.

This is the same woman who earlier had lamented not being able to CC into work at a private clinic that prohibited firearms, and also proclaimed she had limited vision in one eye. I understand her rationale for wanting to protect herself (older woman with conditions that affected her ability to defend herself) but this made me question if CC was the most appropriate option for her.

(FYI: I have a shotgun and am getting into sport shooting. I'm interested in field trials as well. I don't have a CC permit or handgun, carrying isn't practical in most of my daily circumstances).

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Hmm....I was and am all for CC (those of you that do it) but I've definitely got an issue with people that don't practice regularly and don't understand their guns.

I was on the range one day at a women's shooting clinic, and noticed a member next to me was having issues even loading her magazine. The instructor was helping her, but she still struggled to load and hold her firearm properly. She'd had her CC permit and this gun for awhile. I wondered why she didn't have something smaller and easier to load.

This is the same woman who earlier had lamented not being able to CC into work at a private clinic that prohibited firearms, and also proclaimed she had limited vision in one eye. I understand her rationale for wanting to protect herself (older woman with conditions that affected her ability to defend herself) but this made me question if CC was the most appropriate option for her.

(FYI: I have a shotgun and am getting into sport shooting. I'm interested in field trials as well. I don't have a CC permit or handgun, carrying isn't practical in most of my daily circumstances).

Wow, the limited vision in one eye would make me want to stand behind her if she ever had to fire.

That reminds me of a woman in the news who tried to CC in a bra holster and ended up shooting herself and dying whilst trying to get it out. Sad story, but it goes to show that not everyone does it responsibly.

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