Healthcare workers see increase in pediatric firearm injuries

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – Doctors at Children’s Hospital at Erlanger know all too well the dangers that firearms pose to children.   

“We have seen an increase in pediatric firearm injuries. It has almost tripled since 2017,” said Dr. Dave Bhattacharya, Medical Director of Pediatric Trauma at Children’s Hospital at Erlanger. “Unfortunately, we also see a dovetail of the line of children who are getting injured from firearms, whether it be by suicide or by violence.” 

According to Erlanger, firearms are the leading cause of death for children aged 1 to 17. 

Tennessee is 36% higher than the national average for gun related deaths. 

“Whether it is in a closet or whether it is in their grandmother’s purse, they don’t know what these things are,” said Dr. Bhattacharya. “They do not know the lifelong consequences of seeing what a weapon is.”

Unlocked guns can lead to tragic consequences.

“It is leaving your gun secured in the closet, a three-year-old finds it, the horror and the sadness on those parents’ faces is something that cannot be forgotten,” Dr. Bhattacharya said. 

The bottom line is, gun locks save lives.

“We have gun locks available to anybody for free. And there are several other resources but most importantly, we are not asking people to give up their guns. We are just asking them to be stored in a safe and reasonable manner,” Dr. Bhattacharya concluded.