Elderly Risk Screening
People over the age of 65 are often at high risk for firearm violence. One in three people over the age of 65 have a gun in the home. Older adults have some of the highest rates of suicide in the country, with suicide risk especially high in elderly men. In addition, 40 to 60 percent of people with dementia have firearms in their house; dementia can lead to impaired ability to recognize people, hallucinations, and other behavioral changes with the potential for increasing suicidality or aggression. The resources in this section provide assistance on risk assessments in individuals with dementia.
These clinical resources provide a number of guidelines, sample questions, and checklists when screening elderly patients for access to firearms.
This website designed by the University of Colorado Boulder contains questions and potential solutions when working with patients with dementia and their families to create a plan about how to deal with firearms in the house.
Lock To Live is a tool developed by the University of Colorado Boulder to help make decisions about the safe storage of harmful objects like firearms, medicine, and sharp objects.
This article in the Annals of Internal Medicine provides a table of screening questions as well as a sample Family Firearm Agreement for the transfer of firearms from a person with dementia to their family.
If you are in immediate danger, please call 911.
If you are experiencing a crisis, please text or call 988.
The content of this website is not legal advice and is only intended for general informational purposes. If you need legal advice, please contact an attorney.