Healio
Healio

American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference and Exhibition
October 26, 2015
1 min read
Save

Internet not providing accurate information on safe firearm storage

WASHINGTON — A number of websites claiming to offer information on safe firearm and ammunition storage did not provide complete or accurate information to consumers, according to recently presented data.  

“Everyone who is a parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle or neighbor to children should want to protect them from needless firearm injury and death. People who are considering turning to the Internet for guidance on home gun storage should be aware that the information they find is unlikely to give them all the advice they need,” Katherine L. Freundlich, MD, clinical instructor, department of pediatrics and communicable diseases, University of Michigan Medical School, said in a press release.

To assess the quality of consumer-targeted Internet information on household firearm storage, Freundlich and colleagues analyzed information from 87 different websites found using the 10 most commonly used search words pertaining to firearm storage.

Results demonstrated that only 2% of the analyzed websites correctly provided information on firearm storage practices proven to help protect children and adolescents from unintended in-home firearm incidents.

Additionally, many of the sites had poor technical quality and readability, according to the researchers. 

“In the context of possible restrictions on physician assessment of household firearm storage, it will be important to identify the extent to which families rely on alternative sources of information … and to identify ways that families can obtain complete information regarding known protective storage practices,” Freundlich and colleagues wrote. – by Casey Hower

Reference:

Freundlich KL, et al. Quality of consumer-targeted internet guidance on home firearm and ammunition storage # 30023. Presented at: 2015 AAP National Conference and Exhibition; Oct. 23-27; Washington, D.C.

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.