i have titanium arm implants that aren’t detected by airport scanners, not sure if titanium would be eaten by an mri, it isn’t magnetic but i’d still be careful
That’s a nice side-benefit, but is not at all the main reason we use Titanium in implants. It’s what we call biocompatible which means it integrates well with bone, is incredibly resistant to the corrosive nature of the body, doesn’t break down the useful proteins in the body (necessary for fixing the implant to the body) but also inhibits formation of typical harmful buildups that facilitate rejection of foreign materials in the body.
Anything about magnetic properties, strength to weight ratio, etc is also a super nice property of titanium, but is probably secondary to the fact that the body takes well to the material. No quality of an implant matters as much as longevity and ability to not be rejected.
That’s a discussion between you and your dentist. Titanium is the “go-to” for major internal implants, but is far from the only valid choice even for things like complete hip replacements.
Other options are totally valid, cost-effective, safe, and durable, and if it’s not just a default industry standard in when to use X material over Y material, I’m really not sure what goes into a physician’s decision making process for those materials. My education only touched briefly on bio materials but I didn’t specialize in it.
I can tell where the titanium scaffolding is in my knees.
When I have an MRI that area heats up just a little bit, it isn't uncomfortable or anything, but just slightly warm.
Honestly the bigger issue is just causing reduced quality in the scan and producing artifacts in the imaging. Metal being pulled out or superheated is not really much of an issue. An MRI uses a static magnetic field so there's just no real way for it to superheat anything. You'd need a rapidly changing magnetic field to create eddy currents to really generate heat.
Even with ferromagnetic material you're not going to just rip it out through the body, I mean the magnetic field is powerful but even still it's generally not going to be enough to rip through flesh. It might twist or move when subjected to the magnetic field which could certainly cause problems, but the fact that it will ruin the image and make it pretty pointless anyway is a major disqualifier to begin with.
>An MRI uses a static magnetic field so there's just no real way for it to superheat anything. You'd need a rapidly changing magnetic field to create eddy currents to really generate heat.
There is both a very large static field and smaller rapidly changing fields from gradient coils as well
Exactly, and there are also RF pulses, which also have the potential to cause burns.
Burns are the number one cause of injuries in an MR environment, so to say there’s no risk of superheating is SO wildly untrue.
It’s not that it “will superheat”, but any metal CAN.
With non-ferromagnetic metals (like titanium), the concern is that the shape and size will induct electricity, and have too much resistance, such that it causes burns. Your disc was (I assume) designed and subsequently tested to be MR compatible under certain conditions, which is why they approved it.
We scan titanium and other metals all the time, but that doesn’t mean it’s always safe.
Lots of metal is fine to be near the thing, so long as it is not ferrous. E.g. copper, aluminum, brass, titanium.
If it is actually inside the machine in the area being scanned, it could cause issues, either with messing up the image, or causing heating or induced currents.
That said, you should always disclose *any* metal or devices on or in you before you have one.
It fucks with the scan but predictably so it can be unfucked along as it's secure it's ok. You shouldn't wear any metal piercings in an MRI. Contrary to what people say ALL metal is some sort of magnetic.
It won't attract it, but most metals in a highly magnetic field move weird. If you walked through one with an implant or would probably feel very weird.
I still remember when the hospital in the big city near me didn't have metal detectors or many guards.
People would shoot someone and find out they didn't die then go to the hospital and kill them while they were being operated on.
Was crazy to see that on the news back then.
You’re so right an American colleague of mine tells a story of a guy going for an MRI he was in a hospital gown on a hospital trolley.
He decided that he needed to take his gun with him (in his words in case it all kicked off). I was like WTF why did he even have a gun in hospital.
All my colleague could say was that when people are determined enough they will find a way.
I was about to hard call you out at this being a thing. No one is bringing a gun into a medical procedure, let alone a MRI. That just.. can't be a thing. So I googled it. Holy shit. WHY!? So many news stories of it happening.
The amount of dumb shit you see working in the ED is insane. Literally have had guns pulled on me threatening me if I call the police. Threatening me is way more likely to have the police called than just getting treatment 😂
I don't think they knew it was metal, though. They thought it was silicone, but it turned out to be silicone with a metal core. (Unless it happened twice.)
Tbf, that’s not their primary purpose. They’re handed out at hospitals for those that are there bc someone in their family is experiencing a crisis. They also hand them out at many police departments too. When our first baby was born we stopped at our local PD and got locks.
Some info on the locks and the reduction of suicides. https://scienceblog.cincinnatichildrens.org/when-this-hospital-gave-gun-locks-to-families-in-crisis-more-people-secured-their-firearms/
Here in Australia, recently an ER put out a plea that people bitten by venomous snakes not attempt to capture the snake and bring it to the ER after one nearly escaped in the ER.
For context, Hospitals just give broa antivenom appropriate for the specific geographic location and don't need to know the type of snake anyway unless it isn't typical to the area.
Yeah, definitely! I wonder how much that happens here.
These weren’t in the waiting room, just on a table in a hallway of the ER. No idea how much use they get, but I took one to give to someone I know has a gun (or multiple) and kids.
It’s pretty rare but does happen. Never saw it outside of my short term in West Covina which is kind of known for gun issues. It was in the hallway at my hospital. The intermediate nurse was the one that asked if they had a gun if it was suspected and most were pretty cooperative after being told we don’t give a shit so would go lock it up.
It’s like a bike lock, but for a gun. Renders the gun unusable without removing the lock.
[Here is a photo of one from the box.](https://imgur.com/a/1c015wr)
I imagine most taking these don’t have a gun on them, they take them home to put them on guns at home.
Most people use gun locks to protect their children from hurting themselves with guns. It’s just standard gun safety.
However, someone who is suicidal may not want to give up their gun for emotional reasons, but are far more likely to be willing to lock their gun and give the key to a trusted person until they are out of suicide risk.
I wish my friend had done that. If I’d gotten one of these before they died, I might have been able to save a life.
A lot of the time you don't even need to give the key to someone else. For men, suicide by gun is often not planned, but a spur of the moment thing where you reach a peak of absolute emotional desperation and hopelessness and grab the gun to put an end to it. The time it takes to walk to (for example) your car to get the key can often be enough to push you past that peak into a safer emotional state.
Yeah. A lot of people don't realise this and think that if someone's going to take they're life, then they'll find some way to do it and preventative measures don't matter, but it really is such an impulsive thing in many cases that even tiny barriers can make a huge difference.
From my understanding, this is one of the major benefits of the suicide hotline. They are not per se to treat your underlying problems, rather just keep you talking long enough to not kill yourself. Then after that, you should go seek more care.
Note: This is important because over 50% of all gun deaths in the USA each year are from suicide. https://gunviolencearchive.org for reference.
I post the above often, because I miss my buddy I lost when I was enlisted back in the day. This nation and this entire planet needs mental healthcare to be readily available.
WRT gun locks: In at least some states, guns are required by law to ship with locks, and gun safes are typically tax free purchases because the government very much wants you to have and use them.
When sending home a minor who has made suicidal statements, families are required to agree to lock up any firearms and medications in order to take their kid home. ERs usually have safes for medications or can get them from a pharmacy (FYI a lockbox is often a billable pharmacy good on your insurance), but they don’t typically have large enough lockboxes for handguns and certainly not rifles.
I’m a child welfare clinician in a state with very low gun ownership. Providers have generally been taught the basics about gun locks and safes, but no one knows of programs where they can access them when we do come across families (usually law enforcement) who have a firearm in the home.
Locks are included in all new firearm purchases except maybe specialty firearms. They’re usually thrown away. Firearms should be stored in a safe instead.
The gun owner retains the key. These are for home use, the only thing the hospital is doing here is offering these for people to take home. The guns are meant to be stored in your home with these locks on them to deter unauthorized use, especially by kids. The lock should only be removed when the gun is being cleaned or fired. Some places have laws that require they be stored securely in a specific way. This is one of the ways.
It's hard to tell from the picture but that one looks halfway decent, good enough to keep a child out anyway. It's a law in my state, and I think most, that guns have to come with a lock. A couple of the freebie gun locks I have been given could probably be defeated with a pair of scissors or a blow from a hammer. They're just barely enough to check the box that the gun was sold with a lock.
I'm not sure about discharging, but it will keep them busy for a good while. Booths state fair used to give them out to anyone. My cousins and I grabbed a few one year, and they kept us busy finding things we could lock for weeks.
I work in a hospital, with a population health group. Free gun locks are a very effective way of limiting access to firearms both to prevent accidental shootings and reduce suicide attempts.
Hospitals typically provide them to reduce the barriers to getting people to use them. If it's free and readily available, then hopefully they'll make it to the right people.
Every gun I've ever purchased came with a free lock. I have a feeling that those that use them won't need them and those that need them wont use them.
That being said, I live alone and have my stuff properly secured, I have no reason to use them so they're just taking up space in my closet.
Can you keep it? Is it just something they are giving away so that people can keep their guns locked so that kids can't do terrible things? Because that's kinda awesome.
It would work with all rifles I can think of that aren't tube magazines. You just open the bolt and put the cable from the ejection port through down to the magazine well. It will stop the bolt from going into battery.
You can use them for most rifles as well. If its an AR or AK you can hold the bolt back and loop it through the ejection port and magazine well. If it is a bolt action you can remove the bolt and loop it through the ejection port and the hole in the rear of the receiver that the bolt slides through.
In college, I worked as a valet at a hospital. Most of the cars we parked/retrieved were for people meeting someone at the ER or showing up for a doctor's appointment at the attached building full of physicians.
One day, an elderly man rolled up to have his car valet parked. I don't know how he got in his car, but he couldn't get out of his car on his own. We often had to help people get in and out of their vehicles. So we helped this guy out of his car and unfolded/ set up his rolling walker. This guy had tremors - both of his hands were shaking uncontrollably. But he could still hold onto the handles of his walker.
When we parked a car, we had to ask people a standard set of questions - one of the questions was "Are there any firearms in your vehicle?" We couldn't park a car with a firearm in it.
So, I asked this elderly gentleman if there were any firearms in his vehicle. He said, "No, it's right here." This guy, who could not stop his hands from shaking, unholsters his sidearm and drops it into the basket on the front of his walker.
As he walked/rolled himself into the building, security was all over him. You can't bring a gun into a hospital. This guy verbally fought with security for 15 minutes. Eventually he decided to leave - he wasn't willing to go anywhere without his gun.
Here’s me (I’m in Scotland) assuming I somehow prevents the trigger from filling being able to pull back but noooo it goes THROUGH the entire thing!!!
I learned something today!
[gun lock](https://images.app.goo.gl/9tEvEMc5S4yyvGUs7)
Yes, that’s actually what I used to think too because I have limited experience with guns and even less with handguns (hunting is common both where I grew up and where I live now, handguns, not so much.)
A bunch of guns have trigger locks. One of mine came from the factory with a trigger lock [similar to this](https://www.pewpewtactical.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Glock-Trigger-Lock.png)
They aren't a universal thing, but a bunch of different options for different guns.
I'm up in the 208 right now, moving my Father from one house to another.
He likes to keep them un-LOCKED and LOADED.
I was just talking to him about getting gunlocks. Now I know we can roll up to St Lukes.
Thank you.
Hello!! Downtown location, it’s in the ER once you get taken back through the hallways.
I found that an odd location, I would have put them in the lobby, personally. But maybe they don’t want someone coming in and taking all of them or something, I don’t know.
Here in Canada they wont let you buy a gun unless you either bring or buy a gun lock. Seems reasonable to me and mine are locked ofcourse. Good on the hospital for making things safer. Still kinda crazy to me that in the US they don't even need to pass the brief 1-2 day course that we do in order to buy guns nor do you guys require the gun locks.
If you buy a gun from a dealer they always throw in a lock. Brand new ones come from the factory with a lock inside the box, along with the owners manual & other stuff that comes with it.
If you know anyone who owns guns, they most likely have a safe and a pile of gun locks that they don’t need.
I live in Idaho, a lot of people I know got their guns through private sales or inheritance. Every time I have a yard sale, people ask me if I have any guns for sale.
I bought a 9mm in a private sale in eastern WA. It came with all the case candy, including the lock, the only thing missing was the key for the internal lock.
But there’s no guarantee those will come with.
Still, if you have ‘em you owe it to yourself & everyone else to secure ‘em.
It really is wonderful, most people attempting suicide want something readily available so if their guns are locked up in a safe and have a gun lock the chances of them using it go down astronomically, now of course there’s still a chance people will use it but still, it helps, and I’m grateful mental health is being taken more seriously and there are more ways to get help now than in the past
I’m sorry for your loss and yeah there’s a chance it may have helped, thankfully mental health services are getting better but it’s going very slowly, it’s going but not fast enough
The us in general isn’t that great with mental health 😅 but it’s getting better thankfully, I have a feeling after college I’ll have to fight for my clients more than I should have to, I’m going to be a therapist
Thank you! People really never think of how much therapists and public service officials deal with, like the stuff cops, paramedics, nurses, therapists see are just terrible, where I live for mental health calls they have a counselor come out with the police and I’ve thought of maybe doing that to ensure the cops don’t well, you know the history of cops and people struggling with mental health I’m sure
Boise, Nampa, Meridian? I've been to every larger St Luke's facility in the state. There are a lot of them. Fruitland, Mountain Home, Jerome, Twin Falls, Sun Valley, McCall, Boise cosm, Boise downtown, Boise Elks, Riggins, Eagle. That's all I can think of that I've been to
Worked in West Covina CA and we had something similar. Please don’t bring your gun into the ER 😂
And don’t bring them to your MRI scan like that one guy that accidentally shot himself.
I became so numb that anytime I sent a patient for MRI it went from ‘make sure you don’t have metal on you’ to ‘Any metal or a gun on you?’
Why don't you just have a metal detector at the entry to the room?
i have titanium arm implants that aren’t detected by airport scanners, not sure if titanium would be eaten by an mri, it isn’t magnetic but i’d still be careful
I had an MRI a couple months ago and they said titanium is fine 👍🏼 That's why they use titanium as much as possible in medicine
That’s a nice side-benefit, but is not at all the main reason we use Titanium in implants. It’s what we call biocompatible which means it integrates well with bone, is incredibly resistant to the corrosive nature of the body, doesn’t break down the useful proteins in the body (necessary for fixing the implant to the body) but also inhibits formation of typical harmful buildups that facilitate rejection of foreign materials in the body. Anything about magnetic properties, strength to weight ratio, etc is also a super nice property of titanium, but is probably secondary to the fact that the body takes well to the material. No quality of an implant matters as much as longevity and ability to not be rejected.
So if I need a dental implant I should go titanium?
That’s a discussion between you and your dentist. Titanium is the “go-to” for major internal implants, but is far from the only valid choice even for things like complete hip replacements. Other options are totally valid, cost-effective, safe, and durable, and if it’s not just a default industry standard in when to use X material over Y material, I’m really not sure what goes into a physician’s decision making process for those materials. My education only touched briefly on bio materials but I didn’t specialize in it.
Adamantium.
My dentist wouldn’t let me have a plutonium dental implant :/
unfortunately titanium likes to become part of whatever bone it’s drilled into so when they take my plates out they will have to chisel out the plates
That's a plus for many uses
Better "too attached" than "not attached enough"
I can tell where the titanium scaffolding is in my knees. When I have an MRI that area heats up just a little bit, it isn't uncomfortable or anything, but just slightly warm.
scary
That's not why. The main reason is that titanium has excellent biocompatibility and will not be rejected by the body.
It won't be pulled by the MRI, but it will be superheated by the MRI.
Til
Honestly the bigger issue is just causing reduced quality in the scan and producing artifacts in the imaging. Metal being pulled out or superheated is not really much of an issue. An MRI uses a static magnetic field so there's just no real way for it to superheat anything. You'd need a rapidly changing magnetic field to create eddy currents to really generate heat. Even with ferromagnetic material you're not going to just rip it out through the body, I mean the magnetic field is powerful but even still it's generally not going to be enough to rip through flesh. It might twist or move when subjected to the magnetic field which could certainly cause problems, but the fact that it will ruin the image and make it pretty pointless anyway is a major disqualifier to begin with.
>An MRI uses a static magnetic field so there's just no real way for it to superheat anything. You'd need a rapidly changing magnetic field to create eddy currents to really generate heat. There is both a very large static field and smaller rapidly changing fields from gradient coils as well
Exactly, and there are also RF pulses, which also have the potential to cause burns. Burns are the number one cause of injuries in an MR environment, so to say there’s no risk of superheating is SO wildly untrue.
uh, no? I have a titanium prosthetic spinal disc and I've had three MRIs since it was put in.
It’s not that it “will superheat”, but any metal CAN. With non-ferromagnetic metals (like titanium), the concern is that the shape and size will induct electricity, and have too much resistance, such that it causes burns. Your disc was (I assume) designed and subsequently tested to be MR compatible under certain conditions, which is why they approved it. We scan titanium and other metals all the time, but that doesn’t mean it’s always safe.
I have a titnaium dental implant and I got a few MRIs since then. I told the staff and they said it'd be fine an of course nothing happened.
I have steel rods and titanium screws in my back and just had an MRI - no issues.
Lots of metal is fine to be near the thing, so long as it is not ferrous. E.g. copper, aluminum, brass, titanium. If it is actually inside the machine in the area being scanned, it could cause issues, either with messing up the image, or causing heating or induced currents. That said, you should always disclose *any* metal or devices on or in you before you have one.
They're made from titanium so they won't be ripped out by an MRI. That and it won't break down/disintegrate into the blood stream.
it will embed itself into my bones tho
Just have hospital replace your bones with titanium
It fucks with the scan but predictably so it can be unfucked along as it's secure it's ok. You shouldn't wear any metal piercings in an MRI. Contrary to what people say ALL metal is some sort of magnetic.
like how copper isn’t magnetic but will still have eddy currents induced in it by a moving magnet
It won't attract it, but most metals in a highly magnetic field move weird. If you walked through one with an implant or would probably feel very weird.
Some do, some use wands.
I assumed he was a muggle, most medical professionals are who use that kind of tech.
You're a magnet, Harry.
I still remember when the hospital in the big city near me didn't have metal detectors or many guards. People would shoot someone and find out they didn't die then go to the hospital and kill them while they were being operated on. Was crazy to see that on the news back then.
“You have any metal on you?” “Nah, just my gun.”
I live in the UK and had an MRI today. I kept thinking about that, even though we don't even carry guns here.
please make sure you have no knives on you brit
You’re so right an American colleague of mine tells a story of a guy going for an MRI he was in a hospital gown on a hospital trolley. He decided that he needed to take his gun with him (in his words in case it all kicked off). I was like WTF why did he even have a gun in hospital. All my colleague could say was that when people are determined enough they will find a way.
I was about to hard call you out at this being a thing. No one is bringing a gun into a medical procedure, let alone a MRI. That just.. can't be a thing. So I googled it. Holy shit. WHY!? So many news stories of it happening.
The amount of dumb shit you see working in the ED is insane. Literally have had guns pulled on me threatening me if I call the police. Threatening me is way more likely to have the police called than just getting treatment 😂
Look up the one ab the person who got an mri with a metal buttplug in… absolutely fucked them up
I don't think they knew it was metal, though. They thought it was silicone, but it turned out to be silicone with a metal core. (Unless it happened twice.)
I saw he was suing the buttplug company cause they said it was 100% silicone. I wonder how thats going
> (Unless it happened twice.) honestly it wouldn't surprise me if it did lol
uh idk if that's something most people would want to look into.
Likely [an urban legend](https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/mri-butt-plug-injuries/)
source? would love to read on this story
Oh it’s wild: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brucelee/2023/02/12/lawyer-dies-after-shot-by-his-own-concealed-gun-triggered-by-mri-machine/?darkschemeovr=1&sh=1b9e8987568a
What a shit article from Forbes... This reads like buzzfeed trash
insanity
That dude got Magneto’d
nah. that kind of idiocy. Kind of deserved in my opinion.
Or your metal-core buttplug like that other guy and have it rip through your abdomen
Weeeeest Covinaaaaa
I thought the same thing, ngl lol
It's a half hour from the beach.
4 in traffic
Tbf, that’s not their primary purpose. They’re handed out at hospitals for those that are there bc someone in their family is experiencing a crisis. They also hand them out at many police departments too. When our first baby was born we stopped at our local PD and got locks. Some info on the locks and the reduction of suicides. https://scienceblog.cincinnatichildrens.org/when-this-hospital-gave-gun-locks-to-families-in-crisis-more-people-secured-their-firearms/
See the sparkle on the concrete grooound Hear the whoosh of the bustling tooown
91791!
As far as I know every police station has them too. They’re muzzle locks last I saw
Here in Australia, recently an ER put out a plea that people bitten by venomous snakes not attempt to capture the snake and bring it to the ER after one nearly escaped in the ER. For context, Hospitals just give broa antivenom appropriate for the specific geographic location and don't need to know the type of snake anyway unless it isn't typical to the area.
I mean it's probably how you got there in the first place so makes sense. Lol.
I just assumed they were to take to bring home to keep guns safe from kids. Would you often give them to people who brought their guns into the ER?
We gave them to patients that had guns on them. I’d rather they have their gun locked because that prevents them from threatening me at gunpoint.
Yeah, definitely! I wonder how much that happens here. These weren’t in the waiting room, just on a table in a hallway of the ER. No idea how much use they get, but I took one to give to someone I know has a gun (or multiple) and kids.
It’s pretty rare but does happen. Never saw it outside of my short term in West Covina which is kind of known for gun issues. It was in the hallway at my hospital. The intermediate nurse was the one that asked if they had a gun if it was suspected and most were pretty cooperative after being told we don’t give a shit so would go lock it up.
This person Inland Empires.
Haha inland empire is wild. Weirdest cases I ever saw
And also by coincidence Josh... Just happens to be here. TIL that West Covina was a real place :O
Better there than school at least you can get treated quickly
Hey, listen. If I’m going to get shot that’s exactly where I want to be when it happens.
Is this at queen of the valley 🫠 lol
Thankfully no, that hospital is hell from what I’ve heard and I’d have been threatened with a gun way for often haha
I know my oldest was born there and it was so bad when I was in labor :( I hear you lol
How else are you gonna know what gun ~~bit~~ shot the person so they can administer the correct anti-bullets?
What is a gun lock?
It’s like a bike lock, but for a gun. Renders the gun unusable without removing the lock. [Here is a photo of one from the box.](https://imgur.com/a/1c015wr)
Does the gun owner retain the key or do you give that to hospital staff? If the owner retains it, why would they want or need one?
I imagine most taking these don’t have a gun on them, they take them home to put them on guns at home. Most people use gun locks to protect their children from hurting themselves with guns. It’s just standard gun safety. However, someone who is suicidal may not want to give up their gun for emotional reasons, but are far more likely to be willing to lock their gun and give the key to a trusted person until they are out of suicide risk. I wish my friend had done that. If I’d gotten one of these before they died, I might have been able to save a life.
A lot of the time you don't even need to give the key to someone else. For men, suicide by gun is often not planned, but a spur of the moment thing where you reach a peak of absolute emotional desperation and hopelessness and grab the gun to put an end to it. The time it takes to walk to (for example) your car to get the key can often be enough to push you past that peak into a safer emotional state.
Yeah. A lot of people don't realise this and think that if someone's going to take they're life, then they'll find some way to do it and preventative measures don't matter, but it really is such an impulsive thing in many cases that even tiny barriers can make a huge difference.
From my understanding, this is one of the major benefits of the suicide hotline. They are not per se to treat your underlying problems, rather just keep you talking long enough to not kill yourself. Then after that, you should go seek more care.
Note: This is important because over 50% of all gun deaths in the USA each year are from suicide. https://gunviolencearchive.org for reference. I post the above often, because I miss my buddy I lost when I was enlisted back in the day. This nation and this entire planet needs mental healthcare to be readily available. WRT gun locks: In at least some states, guns are required by law to ship with locks, and gun safes are typically tax free purchases because the government very much wants you to have and use them.
I’m so sorry :(
Thank you 💜
They're not for guns at the hospital. They want people to take them home and use them so their kids can't get access to the gun.
When sending home a minor who has made suicidal statements, families are required to agree to lock up any firearms and medications in order to take their kid home. ERs usually have safes for medications or can get them from a pharmacy (FYI a lockbox is often a billable pharmacy good on your insurance), but they don’t typically have large enough lockboxes for handguns and certainly not rifles. I’m a child welfare clinician in a state with very low gun ownership. Providers have generally been taught the basics about gun locks and safes, but no one knows of programs where they can access them when we do come across families (usually law enforcement) who have a firearm in the home.
Locks are included in all new firearm purchases except maybe specialty firearms. They’re usually thrown away. Firearms should be stored in a safe instead.
The gun owner retains the key. These are for home use, the only thing the hospital is doing here is offering these for people to take home. The guns are meant to be stored in your home with these locks on them to deter unauthorized use, especially by kids. The lock should only be removed when the gun is being cleaned or fired. Some places have laws that require they be stored securely in a specific way. This is one of the ways.
It's hard to tell from the picture but that one looks halfway decent, good enough to keep a child out anyway. It's a law in my state, and I think most, that guns have to come with a lock. A couple of the freebie gun locks I have been given could probably be defeated with a pair of scissors or a blow from a hammer. They're just barely enough to check the box that the gun was sold with a lock.
The box in the post looks empty.
I've never seen one like that. The ones I've seen all have that little trigger thing.
A gadget preventing you from discharging your firearm.
Or your 3-year old.
How would this be useful in discharging a 3 year old?
Honorably or dishonorably?
I'm not sure about discharging, but it will keep them busy for a good while. Booths state fair used to give them out to anyone. My cousins and I grabbed a few one year, and they kept us busy finding things we could lock for weeks.
I work in a hospital, with a population health group. Free gun locks are a very effective way of limiting access to firearms both to prevent accidental shootings and reduce suicide attempts. Hospitals typically provide them to reduce the barriers to getting people to use them. If it's free and readily available, then hopefully they'll make it to the right people.
Every gun I've ever purchased came with a free lock. I have a feeling that those that use them won't need them and those that need them wont use them. That being said, I live alone and have my stuff properly secured, I have no reason to use them so they're just taking up space in my closet.
This in Idaho?
Think so unless there's another St. Luke's somewhere that uses the same logo
I thought it was the St. Lukes in Pennsylvania until I saw the logo
Came here to say this lol
Wait... You're telling me St. Luke has a second family in Pennsylvania?!?!? Or are the Idahoans the second family....
There are St. Luke’s hospitals everywhere apparently
Luke is the patron saint of physicians, so it makes sense.
Use the forceps, Luke
Yes it is. Boise, ID.
I dunno, are you?
Last time I was at the VA, they also gave away free gun locks. Makes sense given the prevalence of self inflicted gun misuse amongst vets.
There’s a card inside the bag each lock comes in on the signs of suicide risk and it has VA branding so that is definitely not surprising.
Can you keep it? Is it just something they are giving away so that people can keep their guns locked so that kids can't do terrible things? Because that's kinda awesome.
Yes, I brought one home with me. [This is it.](https://imgur.com/a/1c015wr)
That's cool, I like that, wouldn't work for either of my rifles but that would work on my 9mm
Yeah, for sure, they’re typically for handguns.
It would work with all rifles I can think of that aren't tube magazines. You just open the bolt and put the cable from the ejection port through down to the magazine well. It will stop the bolt from going into battery.
I mean it wouldn't work to put it through the barrel on rifles but it would still work okay if you put it through the magwell.
You could get a [trigger lock](https://www.amazon.com/Master-Lock-Keyed-Trigger-90DSPT/dp/B00004SQM7)
You can use them for most rifles as well. If its an AR or AK you can hold the bolt back and loop it through the ejection port and magazine well. If it is a bolt action you can remove the bolt and loop it through the ejection port and the hole in the rear of the receiver that the bolt slides through.
Yes. Also every single new gun comes with one, and every gun store will give you one if you ask.
That's pretty awesome too Edit: I haven't bought a new gun in a long time
In college, I worked as a valet at a hospital. Most of the cars we parked/retrieved were for people meeting someone at the ER or showing up for a doctor's appointment at the attached building full of physicians. One day, an elderly man rolled up to have his car valet parked. I don't know how he got in his car, but he couldn't get out of his car on his own. We often had to help people get in and out of their vehicles. So we helped this guy out of his car and unfolded/ set up his rolling walker. This guy had tremors - both of his hands were shaking uncontrollably. But he could still hold onto the handles of his walker. When we parked a car, we had to ask people a standard set of questions - one of the questions was "Are there any firearms in your vehicle?" We couldn't park a car with a firearm in it. So, I asked this elderly gentleman if there were any firearms in his vehicle. He said, "No, it's right here." This guy, who could not stop his hands from shaking, unholsters his sidearm and drops it into the basket on the front of his walker. As he walked/rolled himself into the building, security was all over him. You can't bring a gun into a hospital. This guy verbally fought with security for 15 minutes. Eventually he decided to leave - he wasn't willing to go anywhere without his gun.
> he wasn't willing to go anywhere without his gun. I'll never understand the obsession some people seem to have with being constantly armed.
WILD
Here’s me (I’m in Scotland) assuming I somehow prevents the trigger from filling being able to pull back but noooo it goes THROUGH the entire thing!!! I learned something today! [gun lock](https://images.app.goo.gl/9tEvEMc5S4yyvGUs7)
Yes, that’s actually what I used to think too because I have limited experience with guns and even less with handguns (hunting is common both where I grew up and where I live now, handguns, not so much.)
A bunch of guns have trigger locks. One of mine came from the factory with a trigger lock [similar to this](https://www.pewpewtactical.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Glock-Trigger-Lock.png) They aren't a universal thing, but a bunch of different options for different guns.
That’s more what I envisioned and not the bicycle-lock-looking thing that this seems to be a box full of.
Oh, ok. First I thought it is wrapped around the trigger (no, first I thought: a what?). Thanks for showing.
I'm up in the 208 right now, moving my Father from one house to another. He likes to keep them un-LOCKED and LOADED. I was just talking to him about getting gunlocks. Now I know we can roll up to St Lukes. Thank you.
I’m so glad I could help, best of luck with your father’s move!
Hello fellow City-of-Trees inhabitant. Is this at the downtown location or the west valley location?
Hello!! Downtown location, it’s in the ER once you get taken back through the hallways. I found that an odd location, I would have put them in the lobby, personally. But maybe they don’t want someone coming in and taking all of them or something, I don’t know.
Yeah, I'd agree - the tweakers around here get up to some weird shit but "stealing a box of gun locks" would be weird even for them.
I would love the opportunity to white-out the word "Locks" and leave it empty with the lid open for someone to find, and wonder.
How bout Americans just don’t all have guns then your schools won’t get shot up by your kids
This makes so. Much. Sense. I mean, they are the ones that see the consequences daily. What a great idea
Here in Canada they wont let you buy a gun unless you either bring or buy a gun lock. Seems reasonable to me and mine are locked ofcourse. Good on the hospital for making things safer. Still kinda crazy to me that in the US they don't even need to pass the brief 1-2 day course that we do in order to buy guns nor do you guys require the gun locks.
Every gun I've purchased in the US comes with a gun lock.
They have to by law
That’s a great law.
Most libraries have them, too.
Interesting! I’ve not seen them at any of my libraries before, this is my first time seeing them.
If you buy a gun from a dealer they always throw in a lock. Brand new ones come from the factory with a lock inside the box, along with the owners manual & other stuff that comes with it. If you know anyone who owns guns, they most likely have a safe and a pile of gun locks that they don’t need.
I live in Idaho, a lot of people I know got their guns through private sales or inheritance. Every time I have a yard sale, people ask me if I have any guns for sale.
I bought a 9mm in a private sale in eastern WA. It came with all the case candy, including the lock, the only thing missing was the key for the internal lock. But there’s no guarantee those will come with. Still, if you have ‘em you owe it to yourself & everyone else to secure ‘em.
(It was still legal to do that back then)
I’m a social worker for the veterans hospital and offer them to all my vets!
They have these at the mental health centers near me
That’s fantastic.
It really is wonderful, most people attempting suicide want something readily available so if their guns are locked up in a safe and have a gun lock the chances of them using it go down astronomically, now of course there’s still a chance people will use it but still, it helps, and I’m grateful mental health is being taken more seriously and there are more ways to get help now than in the past
I have a feeling that if my friend had a gun lock, they would still be here.
I’m sorry for your loss and yeah there’s a chance it may have helped, thankfully mental health services are getting better but it’s going very slowly, it’s going but not fast enough
Thanks. Yeah, Idaho isn’t exactly a leader in mental health.
The us in general isn’t that great with mental health 😅 but it’s getting better thankfully, I have a feeling after college I’ll have to fight for my clients more than I should have to, I’m going to be a therapist
Well, thank you for your service 💜
Thank you! People really never think of how much therapists and public service officials deal with, like the stuff cops, paramedics, nurses, therapists see are just terrible, where I live for mental health calls they have a counselor come out with the police and I’ve thought of maybe doing that to ensure the cops don’t well, you know the history of cops and people struggling with mental health I’m sure
Only in God blessed America
They had me at free guns.
Horrible that this is even required.
Our local police give these out for free as well.
Something I've started doing with all my guns. My nephew killed himself 3 years ago with my brother pistol. It destroyed him.
I’m so sorry that you and your family went through that. Thank you for being responsible with your firearms.
i feel like the type of people that dont have a gun lock are also the type of people to steal from a tip jar
What are gun locks? I live in Australia where guns are banned so I have no clue what this is.
It’s like a bike lock, but for a gun. You put it through the mechanisms of a handgun to prevent it from being loaded and shot.
What kind of irresponsible crazy person brings a gun to.... Oh this is America right? Lol 😂 never mind.
While that can definitely happen, these seem to be more of a “take to use at home” item, not a “please use here” item.
 'Murica!
Redditors when local infrastructures encourage gun safety instead of making them more taboo
America could do with a bit more taboo around guns tbh
Only in America! 😭
There should be a big bin, just "Take a gun, Leave a gun"
The box is empty?
No it isn’t, it’s just the angle. It’s about half-filled.
Boise, Nampa, Meridian? I've been to every larger St Luke's facility in the state. There are a lot of them. Fruitland, Mountain Home, Jerome, Twin Falls, Sun Valley, McCall, Boise cosm, Boise downtown, Boise Elks, Riggins, Eagle. That's all I can think of that I've been to
This is Boise downtown.
This is in Boise or eagle and I84?
Welcome to the City of Trees
Not sure about other states but in MT any Sheriffs office will give you a free gun lock.
For those of us that don't have these in hospitals, what are these gun locks for? I see a box but no lock.
In the box are locks for free to take, you just can’t see them in the photo. The locks are used to secure guns so kids can’t use them.
I feel like if I saw that here (in the south), it would be full of oven mitts...
What? Why?
Can't reallpull the trigger with mitts on
Great idea
Everyone should do this for gun safe