Firearm-Related Lead Exposure and Child Lead Levels in the United States, 2012-2018.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if firearm ownership is positively related to elevated child lead levels at a state-level, even when accounting for other sources of lead. STUDY DESIGN: For this cross-sectional ecological study, we investigated whether household firearm ownership rates (a proxy for firearm-related lead exposure) was associated with the prevalence of elevated child blood lead levels in 44 US States between 2012 and 2018. To account for potential confounding, we adjusted for other known lead exposures, poverty rate, population density, race, and calendar year. To address missing data, we used multiple imputation by chained equations. RESULTS: Prevalence of elevated child blood lead positively correlated with household firearm ownership and established predictors of lead exposure. In fully adjusted negative binomial regression models, child blood lead was positively associated with household firearm ownership and older housing; each IQR (14%) increase in household firearm ownership rate was associated with a 41% higher prevalence of childhood elevated blood lead (prevalence ratio: 1.41, 95% CI: 1.11-1.79). CONCLUSION: These data provide state-level evidence that firearms may be an important source of child lead exposure. More research is needed to substantiate this relationship and identify modifiable pathways of exposure at the individual level.

The effect of digital health interventions on postpartum depression or anxiety: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to examine the effect of digital health interventions compared with treatment as usual on preventing and treating postpartum depression and postpartum anxiety. DATA SOURCES: Searches were conducted in Ovid MEDLINE, Embase, Scopus, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and ClinicalTrials.gov. STUDY ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS: The systematic review included full-text randomized controlled trials comparing digital health interventions with treatment as usual for preventing or treating postpartum depression and postpartum anxiety. STUDY APPRAISAL AND SYNTHESIS METHODS: Two authors independently screened all abstracts for eligibility and independently reviewed all potentially eligible full-text articles for inclusion. A third author screened abstracts and full-text articles as needed to determine eligibility in cases of discrepancy. The primary outcome was the score on the first ascertainment of postpartum depression or postpartum anxiety symptoms after the intervention. Secondary outcomes included screening positive for postpartum depression or postpartum anxiety --as defined in the primary study --and loss to follow-up, defined as the proportion of participants who completed the final study assessment compared with the number of initially randomized participants. For continuous outcomes, the Hedges method was used to obtain standardized mean differences when the studies used different psychometric scales, and weighted mean differences were calculated when studies used the same psychometric scales. For categorical outcomes, pooled relative risks were estimated. RESULTS: Of 921 studies originally identified, 31 randomized controlled trials-corresponding to 5532 participants randomized to digital health intervention and 5492 participants randomized to treatment as usual-were included. Compared with treatment as usual, digital health interventions significantly reduced mean scores ascertaining postpartum depression symptoms (29 studies: standardized mean difference, -0.64 [95% confidence interval, -0.88 to -0.40]; I2=94.4%) and postpartum anxiety symptoms (17 studies: standardized mean difference, -0.49 [95% confidence interval, -0.72 to -0.25]; I2=84.6%). In the few studies that assessed screen-positive rates for postpartum depression (n=4) or postpartum anxiety (n=1), there were no significant differences between those randomized to digital health intervention and treatment as usual. Overall, those randomized to digital health intervention had 38% increased risk of not completing the final study assessment compared with those randomized to treatment as usual (pooled relative risk, 1.38 [95% confidence interval, 1.18-1.62]), but those randomized to app-based digital health intervention had similar loss-to-follow-up rates as those randomized to treatment as usual (relative risk, 1.04 [95% confidence interval, 0.91-1.19]). CONCLUSION: Digital health interventions modestly, but significantly, reduced scores assessing postpartum depression and postpartum anxiety symptoms. More research is needed to identify digital health interventions that effectively prevent or treat postpartum depression and postpartum anxiety but encourage ongoing engagement throughout the study period.

Leveraging a Learning Collaborative Model to Develop and Pilot Quality Measures to Improve Opioid Prescribing in the Emergency Department.

The American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) Emergency Medicine Quality Network (E-QUAL) Opioid Initiative was launched in 2018 to advance the dissemination of evidence-based resources to promote the care of emergency department (ED) patients with opioid use disorder. This virtual platform-based national learning collaborative includes a low-burden, structured quality improvement project, data benchmarking, tailored educational content, and resources designed to support a nationwide network of EDs with limited administrative and research infrastructure. As a part of this collaboration, we convened a group of experts to identify and design a set of measures to improve opioid prescribing practices to provide safe analgesia while reducing opioid-related harms. We present those measures here, alongside initial performance data on those measures from a sample of 370 nationwide community EDs participating in the 2019 E-QUAL collaborative. Measures include proportion of opioid administration in the ED, proportion of alternatives to opioids as first-line treatment, proportion of opioid prescription, opioid pill count per prescription, and patient medication safety education among ED visits for atraumatic back pain, dental pain, or headache. The proportion of benzodiazepine and opioid coprescribing for ED visits for atraumatic back pain was also evaluated. This project developed and effectively implemented a collection of 6 potential measures to evaluate opioid analgesic prescribing across a national sample of community EDs, representing the first feasibility assessment of opioid prescribing-related measures from rural and community EDs.

Incidence of and Factors Associated With Recurrent Firearm Injury Among Patients Presenting to St. Louis Trauma Centers, 2010 to 2019 : A Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: Firearm injuries are a public health crisis in the United States. OBJECTIVE: To examine the incidence and factors associated with recurrent firearm injuries and death among patients presenting with an acute (index), nonfatal firearm injury. DESIGN: Multicenter, observational, cohort study. SETTING: Four adult and pediatric level I trauma hospitals in St. Louis, Missouri, 2010 to 2019. PARTICIPANTS: Consecutive adult and pediatric patients (n = 9553) presenting to a participating hospital with a nonfatal acute firearm injury. MEASUREMENTS: Data on firearm-injured patient demographics, hospital and diagnostic information, health insurance status, and death were collected from the St. Louis Region-Wide Hospital-Based Violence Intervention Program Data Repository. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Social Vulnerability Index was used to characterize the social vulnerability of the census tracts of patients' residences. Analysis included descriptive statistics and time-to-event analyses estimating the probability of experiencing a recurrent firearm injury. RESULTS: We identified 10 293 acutely firearm-injured patients of whom 9553 survived the injury and comprised the analytic sample. Over a median follow-up of 3.5 years (IQR, 1.5 to 6.4 years), 1155 patients experienced a recurrent firearm injury including 5 firearm suicides and 149 fatal firearm injuries. Persons experiencing recurrent firearm injury were young (25.3 ± 9.5 years), predominantly male (93%), Black (96%), and uninsured (50%), and resided in high social vulnerability regions (65%). The estimated risk for firearm reinjury was 7% at 1 year and 17% at 8 years. LIMITATIONS: Limited data on comorbidities and patient-level social determinants of health. Inability to account for recurrent injuries presenting to nonstudy hospitals. CONCLUSION: Recurrent injury and death are frequent among survivors of firearm injury, particularly among patients from socially vulnerable areas. Our findings highlight the need for interventions to prevent recurrence. PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE: Emergency Medicine Foundation-AFFIRM and Missouri Foundation for Health.

Correction: The Story of #GetMePPE and GetUsPPE.org to Mobilize Health Care Response to COVID-19 : Rapidly Deploying Digital Tools for Better Health Care.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.2196/20469.].

Bystander intervention to prevent firearm injury: A qualitative study of 4-H shooting sports participants.

This qualitative study examines how youth and adult members of 4-H Shooting Sports clubs perceive firearm injury risk and risk reduction, and the applicability of a bystander intervention (BI) risk reduction framework in this community. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 11 youth and 13 adult members of 4-H Shooting Sports clubs across nine US states from March to December of 2021 until thematic saturation was reached. Deductive and inductive thematic qualitative analyses were performed. Six overarching themes emerged: (1) The tendency to view firearm injury as predominantly unintentional in nature; (2) Acknowledgment of a wide array of risks for firearm injury; (3) Perceived barriers to bystander action to prevent firearm injury including knowledge, confidence, and consequences of action; (4) Facilitators of bystander action including a sense of civic responsibility; (5) Direct and indirect strategies to address potential risks for firearm injury; and (6) Belief that BI skills training would be useful for 4-H Shooting Sports. Findings lay the groundwork for applying BI skills training as an approach to firearm injury prevention in 4-H Shooting Sports, similar to how BI has been applied to other types of injury (i.e., sexual assault). 4-H Shooting Sports club members' sense of civic responsibility is a key facilitator. Prevention efforts should attend to the broad array of ways in which firearm injury occurs, including suicide, mass shootings, homicide, and intimate partner violence, as well as unintentional injury.

How Americans encounter guns: Mixed methods content analysis of YouTube and internet search data.

Firearm-related injury and death is a serious public health issue in the U.S. As more Americans consume news and media online, there is growing interest in using these channels to prevent firearm-related harms. Understanding the firearm-related narratives to which consumers are exposed is foundational to this work. This research used the browsing behavior of a representative sample of American adults to identify seven firearm-related content "ecosystems" (defined as naturally occurring networks of channels watched by the same users) on YouTube; we then described the demographics and internet search patterns of users affiliated with each ecosystem. Over the 9-month study period, 72,205 panelists had 16,803,075 person-video encounters with 7,274,093 videos. Among these, 282,419 were related to firearms. Using fast greedy clustering, we partitioned users and channel interactions into seven distinct channel-based content ecosystems that reached more than 1/1000 YouTube users per day. These ecosystems were diverse in reach, users, and content (e.g., guns for self-protection, guns for fun). On average, 0.5% of panelists performed a firearm-related internet search on a given day. The vast majority of searches were related to mass shootings or police-involved shootings (e.g., "active shooter"), and virtually none were about more common firearm harm such as suicide. Searches for firearm safety information were most common among panelists affiliated with the "Hunting & Fishing" and "Guns & Gear" ecosystems, which were watched primarily by older, white men. These findings identify an opportunity for analyzing firearm-related narratives and tailoring firearm safety messaging for users affiliated with specific online content ecosystems.

Using Social Media for Clinical Research: Recommendations and Examples From the Brown-Lifespan Center for Digital Health.

Social media integration into research has increased, and 92% of American social media participants state they would share their data with researchers. Yet, the potential of these data to transform health outcomes has not been fully realized, and the way clinical research is performed has been held back. The use of these technologies in research is dependent on the investigators' awareness of their potential and their ability to innovate within regulatory and institutional guidelines. The Brown-Lifespan Center for Digital Health has launched an initiative to address these challenges and provide a helpful framework to expand social media use in clinical research.

Identifying nonfatal firearm assault incidents through linking police data and clinical records: Cohort study in Indianapolis, Indiana, 2007-2016.

Nonfatal firearm assault incidents are more prevalent than gun homicides, however, little is understood about nonfatal firearm assault incidents due to a lack of accurate data in the United States. This is a descriptive study of all nonfatal firearm assault incidents identified through police and clinical records from 2007 to 2016 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Records were linked at the incident level to demonstrate the overlap and non-overlap of nonfatal firearm assault incidents in police and clinical records and describe differences in demographic characteristics of the victims. Incidents were matched within a 24-h time window of the recorded date of the police incident. Data were analyzed in fall 2020. There were 3797 nonfatal firearm assault incidents identified in police reports and 3131 clinical encounters with an ICD 9/10 diagnosis-based nonfatal firearm-related injury. 62% (n = 2366) of nonfatal firearm assault incidents matched within 24 h to a clinical encounter, 81% (n = 1905) had a firearm related ICD code: 40% (n = 947) were coded as a firearm-related assault, 32% (n = 754) were coded as a firearm-related accident; and 8.6% (n = 198) were coded as undetermined, self-inflicted or law enforcement firearm-related. The other 20% (n = 461) did not have an ICD firearm related diagnosis code. Results indicate most nonfatal firearm assault incidents overlap between police and clinical records systems, however, discrepancies between the systems exist. These findings also demonstrate an undercounting of nonfatal firearm assault incidents when relying on clinical data systems alone and more efforts are needed to link administrative police and clinical data in the study of nonfatal firearm assaults.

Increases in Actual Health Care Costs and Claims After Firearm Injury.

BACKGROUND: The incidence of firearm injury and death in the United States is increasing. Although the health care-related effect of firearm injury is estimated to be high, existing data are largely cross-sectional, do not include data on preinjury and postinjury health care visits and related costs, and use hospital charges rather than actual monetary payments. OBJECTIVE: To compare actual health care costs (that is, actual monetary payments) and utilizations within the 6 months before and after an incident (index) firearm injury. DESIGN: Before-after study. SETTING: Blue Cross Blue Shield plans of Illinois, Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Montana. PARTICIPANTS: Plan members continuously enrolled for at least 12 months before and after an index firearm injury sustained between 1 January 2015 and 31 December 2017. MEASUREMENTS: Eligible costs, out-of-pocket costs, and firearm injury-related International Classification of Diseases, Ninth or 10th Revision, codes. RESULTS: Total initial (emergency department [ED]) health care costs for persons with index firearm injuries who were discharged from the ED were $8 158 786 ($5686 per member). Total initial (hospital admission) costs for persons with index firearm injuries who required hospitalization were $41 255 916 ($70 644 per member). Compared with the 6 months before the index firearm injury, in the 6 months after, per-member costs increased by 347% (from $3984 to $17 806 per member) for those discharged from the ED and 2138% (from $4118 to $92 151 per member) for those who were hospitalized. The number of claims increased by 187% for patients discharged from the ED and 608% for those who were hospitalized. LIMITATION: Firearm injury intent was not specified because of misclassification concerns. CONCLUSION: In the 6 months after a firearm injury, patient-level health care visits and costs increased by 3 to 20 times compared with the 6 months prior. The burden of firearm injury on the health care system is large and quantifiable. PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE: None.

Adolescent Substance Abuse Risk: A Comparison of Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network Emergency Department Patients and 2 Nationally Representative Samples.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to understand the prevalence of alcohol and other substance use among teenagers in generalized samples. METHODS: This study compared the alcohol and other substance use of adolescents enrolled in a screening study across 16 Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network emergency departments (EDs) (ASSESS) with those sampled in 2 nationally representative surveys, the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) and the National Survey of Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). The analysis includes 3362 ASSESS participants and 11,142 YRBSS and 12,086 NSDUH respondents. RESULTS: The ASSESS patients had a similar profile to the NSDUH sample, with small differences in marijuana and cocaine use and age at first tobacco smoking and smoking within the last 30 days and higher use of snuff or chewing tobacco. The YRBSS participants had higher rates of using marijuana, snuff/chewing tobacco, methamphetamine, and hallucinogens and higher smoking rates compared with ASSESS and NSDUH. CONCLUSIONS: Adolescents visiting Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network EDs have substantial rates of substance use, similar to other nationally representative studies on this topic, although not as high as a school-based survey. Future ED studies should continue to investigate adolescent substance use, including exploring optimal methods of survey administration.

Preventing Firearm-Related Death and Injury.

Deaths and injuries from firearms are significant public health problems, and clinicians are in a unique position to identify risk among their patients and discuss the importance of safe firearm practices. Although clinicians may be ill-prepared to engage in such discussions, an adequate body of evidence is available for support, and patients are generally receptive to this type of discussion with their physician. Here, we provide an overview of existing research and recommended strategies for counseling and intervention to reduce firearm-related death and injury.

The Story of #GetMePPE and GetUsPPE.org to Mobilize Health Care Response to COVID-19 : Rapidly Deploying Digital Tools for Better Health Care.

Physicians, nurses, and other health care providers initiated the #GetMePPE movement on Twitter to spread awareness of the shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. Dwindling supplies, such as face masks, gowns and goggles, and inadequate production to meet increasing demand have placed health care workers and patients at risk. The momentum of the #GetMePPE Twitter hashtag resulted in the creation of a petition to urge public officials to address the PPE shortage through increased funding and production. Simultaneously, the GetUsPPE.org website was launched through the collaboration of physicians and software engineers to develop a digital platform for the donation, request, and distribution of multi-modal sources of PPE. GetUsPPE.org and #GetMePPE were merged in an attempt to combine public engagement and advocacy on social media with the coordination of PPE donation and distribution. Within 10 days, over 1800 hospitals and PPE suppliers were registered in a database that enabled the rapid coordination and distribution of scarce and in-demand materials. One month after its launch, the organization had distributed hundreds of thousands of PPE items and had built a database of over 6000 PPE requesters. The call for action on social media and the rapid development of this digital tool created a productive channel for the public to contribute to the health care response to COVID-19 in meaningful ways. #GetMePPE and GetUsPPE.org were able to mobilize individuals and organizations outside of the health care system to address the unmet needs of the medical community. The success of GetUsPPE.org demonstrates the potential of digital tools as a platform for larger health care institutions to rapidly address urgent issues in health care. In this paper, we outline this process and discuss key factors determining success.

What are the long-term consequences of youth exposure to firearm injury, and how do we prevent them? A scoping review.

The long-term consequences of exposure to firearm injury-including suicide, assault, and mass shootings-on children's mental and physical health is unknown. Using PRISMA-ScR guidelines, we conducted a scoping review of four databases (PubMed, Scopus, PsychINFO, and CJ abstract) between January 1, 1985 and April 2, 2018 for articles describing long-term outcomes of child or adolescent firearm injury exposure (n = 3582). Among included studies (n = 31), most used retrospective cohorts or cross-sectional studies to describe the correlation between firearm injury and post-traumatic stress. A disproportionate number of studies examined the effect of mass shootings, although few of these studies were conducted in the United States and none described the impact of social media. Despite methodologic limitations, youth firearm injury exposure is clearly linked to high rates of post-traumatic stress symptoms and high rates of future injury. Evidence is lacking on best practices for prevention of mental health and behavioral sequelae among youth exposed to firearm injury. Future research should use rigorous methods to identify prevalence, correlates, and intervention strategies for these at-risk youth.

Protecting User Privacy and Rights in Academic Data-Sharing Partnerships: Principles From a Pilot Program at Crisis Text Line.

Data sharing between technology companies and academic health researchers has multiple health care, scientific, social, and business benefits. Many companies remain wary about such sharing because of unaddressed concerns about ethics, data security, logistics, and public relations. Without guidance on these issues, few companies are willing to take on the potential work and risks involved in noncommercial data sharing, and the scientific and societal potential of their data goes unrealized. In this paper, we describe the 18-month long pilot of a data-sharing program led by Crisis Text Line (CTL), a not-for-profit technology company that provides a free 24/7 text line for people in crisis. The primary goal of the data-sharing pilot was to design, develop, and implement a rigorous framework of principles and protocols for the safe and ethical sharing of user data. CTL used a stakeholder-based policy process to develop a feasible and ethical data-sharing program. The process comprised forming a data ethics committee; identifying policy challenges and solutions; announcing the program and generating interest; and revising the policy and launching the program. Once the pilot was complete, CTL examined how well the program ran and compared it with other potential program models before putting in place the program that was most suitable for its organizational needs. By drawing on CTL's experiences, we have created a 3-step set of guidelines for other organizations that wish to develop their own data-sharing program with academic researchers. The guidelines explain how to (1) determine the value and suitability of the data and organization for creating a data-sharing program; (2) decide on an appropriate data sharing and collaboration model; and (3) develop protocols and technical solutions for safe and ethical data sharing and the best organizational structure for implementing the program. An internal evaluation determined that the pilot satisfied CTL's goals of sharing scientific data and protecting client confidentiality. The policy development process also yielded key principles and protocols regarding the ethical challenges involved in data sharing that can be applied by other organizations. Finally, CTL's internal review of the pilot program developed a number of alternative models for sharing data that will suit a range of organizations with different priorities and capabilities. In implementing and studying this pilot program, CTL aimed both to optimize its own future data-sharing programs and to inform similar decisions made by others. Open data programs are both important and feasible to establish. With careful planning and appropriate resources, data sharing between big data companies and academic researchers can advance their shared mission to benefit society and improve lives.

"Hey, let me hold your guns for a while": A qualitative study of messaging for firearm suicide prevention.

A recommended component of suicide prevention is encouraging at-risk individuals to voluntarily and temporarily reduce access to firearms and other lethal methods. Yet delivering counseling on the topic can be difficult, given the political sensitivity of firearm discussions. To support such counseling, we sought to identify recommended framing and content of messages about reducing firearm access for suicide prevention. Through qualitative interviews with firearm owners and enthusiasts, we identified key points for use in framing (identity as a gun owner, trust, voluntary and temporary storage, and context and motivation) and specific content (preference for "firearm" over "gun," and legal issues such as background checks for transfers). These findings build on prior work and should enhance efforts to develop and deliver effective, acceptable counseling and-ultimately-prevent firearm suicide.

Real-Time Emergency Department Electronic Notifications Regarding High-Risk Patients: A Systematic Review.

Background: To systematically review evidence on the feasibility and efficacy of real-time electronic notifications about patients at high risk of emergency department (ED) recidivism. Methods: Eight electronic databases were searched for empirical studies of real-time ED-based electronic tools, identifying adult patients at high risk of frequent utilization. Study selection and data extraction were performed independently by two reviewers. Qualitative data synthesis and assessment of strength of evidence were conducted through consensus discussion. Results: Of 2,256 records found through the search, 210 were duplicates, 2,004 were excluded based on abstract review, and 31 were excluded after full text review. The final sample consisted of 10 studies described in 11 articles describing the effect of real-time ED-based electronic notifications for high-risk patients. Three were randomized controlled trials (RCTs). All notifications were based on prespecified markers of risk. Seven studies integrated complex care plans into the electronic health record. Effect on ED use and length of stay (LOS) was mixed: nine studies reported decreased ED use, although results were statistically significant in only three studies; for LOS, one study reported a statistically significant reduction. Impact on cost and financial metrics was promising, with three (of three studies reporting this metric) showing improved organizational financial metrics. Three RCTs reported a reduction in opioid prescriptions. Conclusions: Real-time electronic notifications of ED providers regarding patients at high risk of ED recidivism are feasible. They may help reduce resource utilization and costs. Large knowledge gaps remain regarding patient- and provider-centered outcomes.

Feasibility and Acceptability of an Electronic Parenting Skills Intervention for Parents of Alcohol-Using Adolescent Trauma Patients.

Background: Identifying problem drinkers and providing brief intervention (BI) for those who screen positive are required within all level I trauma centers. While parent-adolescent relationships impact adolescent alcohol use, parenting skills are rarely included in adolescent alcohol BIs within pediatric trauma centers. Introduction: The primary objective of this study was to examine the feasibility and acceptability of an electronic parenting skills intervention for parents of injured adolescents who report alcohol or drug use. Materials and Methods: Across three pediatric level I trauma centers, admitted trauma patients 12-17 years of age, screening positive for alcohol or drug use, were consented along with one parent. Adolescent-parent dyads were enrolled and assigned to the intervention (Parenting Wisely web-based modules coupled with text messaging) or standard care conditions using a 2:1 allocation ratio. Teens completed 3- and 6-month follow-up surveys; parents completed 3-month follow-up surveys. Results: Thirty-seven dyads were enrolled into the study. Only one-third of parents accessed the web-based Parenting Wisely after baseline. All parents completed the text message program. At 3-month follow-up, 78% of parents endorsed that they would recommend the program to others. There were no significant differences in adolescent substance use or parenting behaviors between groups at follow-up. Discussion: A texting component is well received, but web-based components may be underutilized. Larger studies are necessary to determine if an electronic skills intervention has an effect on parenting skills and adolescent substance use. Conclusions: This study demonstrated accessibility and feasibility of an e-parenting intervention with more utilization of text components than web-based.

Can Statewide Emergency Department, Hospital Discharge, and Violent Death Reporting System Data Be Used to Monitor Burden of Firearm-Related Injury and Death in Rhode Island?

CONTEXT: National data on the epidemiology of firearm injuries and circumstances of firearm deaths are difficult to obtain and often are nonreliable. Since firearm injury and death rates and causes can vary substantially between states, it is critical to consider state-specific data sources. OBJECTIVE: In this study, we illustrate how states can systematically examine demographic characteristics, firearm information, type of wound, toxicology tests, precipitating circumstances, and costs to provide a comprehensive picture of firearm injuries and deaths using data sets from a single state with relatively low rates of firearm injury and death. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Firearm-related injury data for the period 2005-2014 were obtained from the Rhode Island emergency department and hospital discharge data sets; death data for the same period were obtained from the Rhode Island Violent Death Reporting System. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Descriptive statistics were used. Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project cost-to-charge ratios were used to convert total hospital charges to costs. RESULTS: Most firearm-related emergency department visits (55.8%) and hospital discharges (79.2%) in Rhode Island were from assaults; however, most firearm-related deaths were suicides (60.1%). The annual cost of firearm-related hospitalizations was more than $830 000. Most decedents who died because of firearms tested positive for illicit substances. Nearly a quarter (23.5%) of firearm-related homicides were due to a conflict between the decedent and suspect. More than half (59%) of firearm suicide decedents were reported to have had current mental or physical problems prior to death. CONCLUSIONS: Understanding the state-specific magnitude and patterns (who, where, factors, etc) of firearm injury and death may help inform local injury prevention efforts. States with similar data sets may want to adopt our analyses. Surveillance of firearm-related injury and death is essential. Dissemination of surveillance findings to key stakeholders is critical in improving firearm injury prevention. States that are not part of the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) could work with their other data sources to obtain a better picture of violent injuries and deaths to make the best use of resources.