Store Safely

Firearm related injuries are the leading cause of death among youth in the United States, with firearms accounting for over half of our nation’s suicide deaths. Rates of firearm-related suicides among rural youth are increasing at an alarming rate and although safe firearm storage reduces risk, few interventions exist that are tailored to rural communities where firearms are prevalent and an important part of community and family culture. Store Safely, a culturally tailored multi-component primary prevention strategy for rural families is being tested using a Hybrid Type 2 effectiveness-implementation design to examine its impact on family firearm storage and to determine the most effective dissemination strategies for this highly scalable intervention.

We are currently in the midst of our Aim 2 randomized control trial to test the online intervention. Next, we will be examining the most effective ways of sharing Store Safely with the community and looking to expand the reach of this prevention strategy.