The second annual 2023 National Research Conference for the Prevention of Firearm-Related Harms was held in Chicago earlier this month, bringing together more than 650 people to discuss the latest trends and findings in firearm injury prevention research.
The University of Michigan played a crucial role in the organization of the 2022 conference and again this year, serving on both the Board of Directors and leadership team of the new Research Society for the Prevention of Firearm-Related Harms – a society that was announced following the success of last year’s gathering.
U-M Institute for Firearm Injury Prevention faculty, junior faculty, post-doctoral students led 43 presentations during the conference in Chicago, among the more than 330 given throughout the full three day program.
Of those, two won awards:
Equity and Justice Award: Hsing-Fang Hsieh, University of Michigan, Mental distress as a mediator between racism experience and firearm behavior among Asian Americans
Translational Science Award: Zainab Hans, University of Michigan, Unmasking the confluence: Evaluating the joint effects of COVID-19 and historic redlining on firearm violence
The conference hosted researchers from 250 different institutions and featured science from multiple disciplines including, medicine, public health, anthropology, business, economics, criminal justice, law, sociology, social work, political science, and engineering. Programming included topics such as firearm suicide prevention, community and youth firearm violence, school shootings, intimate partner firearm violence, firearm injury prevention policy, data access and development, and disparate community impact.
Dr. Patrick Carter, co-dreictor of the Institute, spoke with WSJM ahead of the conference about U-M’s role in this field and the importance of applying evidence-based strategies to address this crisis.
Additional media coverage of the conference: