Partnering firearm retailers and healthcare to promote secure and temporary firearm storage
Target Safety: a Collaboration of Firearm Retailers and Health Care to Address Suicide Prevention
This project will test whether culturally tailored messages and training about secure and temporary out-of-home firearm storage are acceptable to firearm retailers, range owners, and healthcare providers in the Houston area.
Quick facts
| Phase | Not applicable |
|---|---|
| Study type | Interventional |
| Enrollment | 240 (estimated) |
| Ages | 18 Years and up |
| Sex | All |
| Sponsor | The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston Academic / other |
| Locations | 1 site (Houston, Texas) |
| Trial ID | NCT07223970 on ClinicalTrials.gov |
What this trial studies
This interventional project brings together firearm retailers, shooting range owners, and healthcare providers in the greater Houston area to deliver training on temporary out-of-home storage (TOHS) and to develop culturally competent secure-storage messaging. Participants will receive TOHS training and review messaging in English or Spanish while researchers collect structured feedback on acceptability, feasibility, and likely uptake. The study emphasizes perceptions and practical barriers to offering TOHS through retail and clinical settings. Findings will inform whether and how retailer-healthcare collaborations can be scaled to reduce firearm access during high-risk periods.
Who should consider this trial
Good fit: Ideal participants are English- or Spanish-speaking gun store owners, firearm range owners, and healthcare providers located in the greater Houston area.
Not a fit: Those unlikely to receive benefit include people outside the Houston area, non-English/non-Spanish speakers, and individuals who cannot access or collaborate with participating retailers or providers.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the approach could increase availability and use of safe and temporary out-of-home firearm storage and help reduce access to firearms during times of elevated suicide risk.
How similar studies have performed: Prior research supports safe-storage messaging and lethal-means counseling for suicide prevention, but direct partnerships between firearm retailers and healthcare providers to deliver TOHS are relatively novel and less tested.
Eligibility criteria
Show full inclusion / exclusion criteria
Inclusion Criteria: * Gun store owners, firearm range owners, and healthcare providers in the greater Houston area Exclusion Criteria: * Non-English or Spanish speakers
Where this trial is running
Houston, Texas
- The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston — Houston, Texas, United States (Recruiting)
Study contacts
- Principal investigator: Sandra McKay, MD — The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston
- Study coordinator: Sandra McKay, MD
- Email: Sandra.McKay@uth.tmc.edu
- Phone: (713) 500-5666
How to participate
- Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
- Visit the official trial page on ClinicalTrials.gov for the most current contact information and recruitment status.
- Contact the listed study coordinator or principal investigator to request pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.