Evaluation of Firearm-related Recidivism in Connecticut An Opportunity for Gun Violence Prevention
*Kathleen M O'Neill, *James Dodington, Kimberly Davis, *Robert D Becher
Yale New Haven Hospital, New Haven, CT
Objective: The regional extent of the risk of repeat firearm-related injury and overall mortality for victims of firearm injury in Connecticut is unknown. In this study, we evaluate the risk of repeat firearm injury in victims of gun violence in Connecticut. Design: A cohort study of patients with a firearm-related hospitalization (FRH) in 2014 to determine their risk of a repeat firearm injury or mortality from homicide in the ensuing 5 years compared to non-violence-related trauma patient controls. Setting: Medical record data from Yale New Haven Hospital (YNHH) Health System in combination with 2014-2019 data from the Connecticut Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Patients: Subjects with a FRH in 2014 and control subjects with a non-violence-related trauma admission. Interventions: N/A Main Outcomes: Firearm injury or mortality from homicide in the ensuing 5 years. Results: We identified 101 patients with a FRH in the YNHH system from 2014 that survived to discharge. Of these patients, 7.9% (8 of 101) had a repeat firearm-related injury within the next 5 years. The overall homicide mortality rate was 2% (2 of 101) over the next five years. Compared to non-violence-related trauma patients from 2014, those with a FRH had six times the odds of homicide mortality. There were no FRH in the control group in the 5 years after discharge. Conclusions: Of the patients presenting with an initial FRH in the YNHH system, 1 in 12 will experience another gunshot wound within the next 5 years. These data indicate that more can be done to prevent firearm-related injury recidivism and break the cycle of gun violence in Connecticut.
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