Children's Hospitals Today - Summer 2024 - 3

CHA VOICES / CHECKING IN
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Chair
Jeff Sperring, MD
Seattle Children's
Vice Chair
Jena Hausmann
Children's Hospital Colorado
Secretary
Margaret Rush, MD
Monroe Carell Jr Children's Hospital
at Vanderbilt
Treasurer
R. Lawrence Moss, MD
Nemours Children's Health
Board Members
Chanda Chacón
Children's Nebraska
Kevin Churchwell, MD
Boston Children's Hospital
Mike Farrell
Advocate Children's Hospital
Deborah Feldman
Dayton Children's
Patricio A. Frias, MD
Rady Children's Hospital
Paul Kempinski
Children's Mercy Kansas City
Timothy Robinson
Nationwide Children's Hospital
Mark Scheurer, MD
MUSC Shawn Jenkins
Children's Hospital
Matthew Cook
Childrenʼs Hospital Association
A public health crisis
We must work together to make communities safe
for kids to grow and thrive.
E
arlier this year, U.S. Surgeon General
Vivek Murthy, MD, issued the office's
first-ever advisory on firearm violence,
declaring it a public health crisis. This
formal acknowledgement
of the gun
violence crisis is a monumental step.
However, the problem is already well
known to those of us who work in our nation's
children's hospitals.
Guns are the leading cause of death
among children and adolescents in the
U.S., far exceeding any type of illness
or accident. According to the Surgeon
General's Advisory on Firearm Violence,
4,603 children under the age of 19 died
from firearms in 2022. The report also
states weekly ED visits for firearm injuries
were consistently highest among young
people ages 15-24 between 2019 and 2022.
CHA is continuing to work with children's
hospitals and health care organizations
to address the problem and create
solutions. In March, the association joined
a national gun violence prevention initiative
led by the Ad Council and a growing
coalition of hospital and health system
leaders. Set to launch in early 2025, the initiative
will mobilize advertising, media,
and marketing industries to tackle gun
violence prevention and safety.
In June, we joined leaders from 30 CHA
member hospitals at the White House to
talk about the health care industry's vital
role in addressing gun violence. CHA has
also worked alongside Northwell Health's
Hospitals United campaign that encourages
parents to ask questions about safe
firearms storage in homes where their
children spend time.
Legislatively, CHA supported efforts
to fund gun violence research, protect
hospital workers from workplace violence,
and assist health care providers as they
talk to families about safe firearm storage.
We endorsed the Bipartisan Safer
Communities Act, which implemented
gun safety laws and funded school safety
and youth mental health programs, and
supported the Safety from Violence for
Healthcare Employees Act, which would
criminalize assault and intimidation of
health care workers if passed.
These are steps in the right direction,
but we must not become complacent. We
must continue to work together to make
communities safe for kids to grow, to learn,
to play, and to thrive. I encourage you to
engage with CHA and your peer hospitals
to collaboratively address this problem.
MATTHEW COOK
President and CEO
Children's Hospital Association
CHILDREN'S HOSPITALS TODAY Summer 2024
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Children's Hospitals Today - Summer 2024

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