Georgia Stay SAFE – R5Trauma Education and Outreach Team

Unfortunately, 90% of fatal firearm incidents involving children occur in the home, and more than a third of all unintentional shootings of children occur in the homes of their friends, neighbors, or relatives. Still, most parents never think to ask about the presence of unsecured guns where their children play.

Over the last six years, a group of health care providers and public health advocates in Georgia has worked diligently to combat the rise in firearm injury deaths in children and teens. Initially, our organization modeled our campaign after Asking Saves Kids or ASK Day. The National ASK Day campaign encouraged families to ask about the presence of unlocked firearms in the homes their children visited in correlation with the first day of summer. Evidence has shown that storing guns safely in the home reduces the risk of firearm injury and death. About 4.6 million children in the US live in homes where guns are not stored securely. Almost 50% of Georgians have guns in their homes, and many of these guns are not stored locked, unloaded, and separate from ammunition.

In 2021 we launched the Georgia Stay SAFE Campaign to be laser-focused on our state’s specific demographics and cultural framework. Our efforts are non-partisan and represent the collective work of a growing coalition with the sole aim of preventing firearm injury and death in children. SAFE stands for S-Store Firearms Securely, A-Ask Before Play, F-Focus on Safety, E-End Firearm Injury. With the help of the Georgia Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics and our Georgia Trauma System partners, the Georgia Stay SAFE Coalition has grown to include many new institutions and partners from throughout the state.

Too many children have lost their lives to firearm injuries. No single organization can tackle this issue alone. We would be honored if your organization would consider joining the Georgia Stay SAFE Campaign. We hope these resources will assist you as you work with your local partners to combat firearm injury.

Thank you for your work to keep kids SAFE in Georgia!
Kiesha Fraser Doh, MD
Chair, Georgia Stay SAFE Coalition

#PreventTrauma #GeorgiaStaySAFE

Please email region5rtac@gmail.com to learn more.