Citation

Vanhoy MA. J. Emerg. Nurs. 2005; 31(1): 22-23.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2005, Emergency Nurses Association, Publisher Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.jen.2004.07.069

PMID

15682118

Abstract

The tradition of hunting often is passed from generation to generation. For some families, hunting is a family event. While the family hunting tradition is common in many areas, the extent that firearm safety information is shared among family members is concerning. The Annual Report of Hunting and Hunting Related Incidents showed that for children 1 to 19 years old, there were 173 and 111 mishaps in 1999 and 2000, respectively. The data include both fatal and nonfatal mishaps for 2-party and self-inflicted incidents. In 2004, a 12-year-old was killed in our county because of a crossbow (which is illegal) mishap. However, the data does not include firearm deaths and injuries related to falls, exposure, submersions, and other nonweapon incidents. The purpose of this project was to augment currently developed firearm safety awareness programs in order to focus on the children who hunt with their parents. The safe hunting family project targeted families with children ages 4 to 16 years old who were residents of the rural Eastern Shore in Maryland. The children included were 4- to 10-year-olds who do not carry a bow or gun and adolescents and 10- to 16-year-olds who actively hunt. A poster reflecting safe family hunting was designed, which included the use of personal flotation devices while duck hunting, the use of safety straps in a tree stand, correct movement with a gun, and the use of a bow. Children are pictured hunting while demonstrating specific safety measures. This poster was developed and disseminated in collaboration with the other safety programs as part of an Emergency Medical Services for Children (EMS-C) Special Project. These posters were distributed in bulk (more than 500 total) to all the EMS-C Coordinators in the United States, at EMS conferences across Maryland, all sporting goods stores, wildlife management areas, and Department of Natural Resources offices on the Eastern Shore. Evaluation of the effectiveness of the poster included the return demonstration of the children in stores or classes of gun and hunting safety techniques along with verbal feedback from both youth and family. The youth were asked to give examples of safety hunting in different scenarios. The long-term effectiveness of the posters to improve safe family hunting has not been quantified, other than knowing how many posters were distributed and to which locations.