AzPHA’s landmark report of firearm violence epidemiology and intervention evidence review is featured in the June edition of the American Public Health Association’s monthly newspaper The Nations Health
The article discusses how the AzPHA Board of Directors identified firearm violence as a top priority and how our affiliate followed through by publishing our comprehensive report.
The piece does a nice job answering ‘why’ we felt compelled to write the report and our hope that the work will translate into policy action by implementing some evidence-based foundational laws that have been proven to reduce firearm injury and mortality.
Any good policy intervention starts with surveillance and an evidence review, and we decided to do that… to fill that gap. Any good Affiliate should think of themselves as a conduit for policy change and face the kinds of issues where there is resistance at the state level in terms of the governor.
Also from the article: ‘Making the report a reality was no easy task. The public health impact of firearm violence was not a priority for state agencies during the administration of former Arizona Governor Doug Ducey. A lack of buy in at the state level kept the health department from leading on gun violence prevention, but as a nonprofit organization, AZPHA is able to advocate for causes that might challenge the direction taken by state agencies.’
See the full article in The Nation’s Health: June 2023
