Guns are the leading cause of death for US children and teens. Two doctors who treat gun violence patients discuss what it will take to address this deadly epidemic.
On this edition of Your Call, we speak with two doctors who treat shooting victims and study the epidemic of gun violence in the US.
Dr. Megan Ranney, dean of public health at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, says the damage from an AR-15's bullet is almost indescribable. It creates gaping holes. It liquefies organs. It is rarely survivable. In the ER, she mostly sees handgun injuries from suicides, domestic violence, and community violence. "Regardless of the gun used, the way a bullet rips through a body is similar to the way gun violence tears apart a community.”
Dr. Bindi J. Naik-Mathuria, chief of pediatric surgery at the University of Texas Medical Branch, also treats gun violence victims. For 200 days, she thought her five-year-old patient might die after he was struck by a stray bullet from a gunfight outside of his apartment. He made an incredible recovery. Dr. Naik-Mathuria told the Houston Chronicle that on some days, he is the reason she goes to work.
In 2021, Dr. Naik-Mathuria received a grant from the CDC to study the epidemiology of firearm injuries in Harris County, Texas. She says gun violence is a public health problem that will benefit from a public health approach and solution.