THE CONCEPT AND MAIN CHARACTERISTICS OF "SCHOOLSHOOTING"

the article analyzes the issue of defining the concepts of "Schoolshooting", "Columbine" "active shooter" and discusses examples of the manifestation of these concepts in the Russian Federation. Special attention is paid to the aspect of detection and prevention of these illegal acts

Districts Implementation of Active Shooter Drill Policies

High-profile school shootings provoke public outcry and calls for policy responses to gun violence in schools. However, policy makers face pressure from diverse stakeholders with distinct agendas, and in some areas, there is little empirical research to guide policy makers’ decisions. Active shooter drills are one such example of a hotly debated policy response in need of further study. As a preliminary step to filling this research gap, this mixed-methods study investigated how school districts in Florida have implemented active shooter drills following legislation passed after the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida. We analyzed school safety specialists’ perceptions and reports of drill procedures and their alignment with best practices. The majority of the districts surveyed aligned with Best Practices established by the National Association of School Psychologists and National Association of School Resource Officers. Implications for future research and considerations for the implementation of active shooter drills are discussed.

Multimodal Active Shooter Training for Emergency Department Personnel: An Initiative for Knowledge, Comfort, and Retention

Background: While hospital-related shootings are not common, recent years have demonstrated an increasing trend, especially involving the emergency department (ED). Despite this increase, there remains a lack of effective training for providers for active shooter events. Existing trainings commonly lack active participation, departmental-specific plans, or feasibility. Methods: Sixty-six emergency medicine physicians, nurses, and technicians participated in a two-phased multimodal active shooter training aimed to increase response knowledge and comfort. The initial training phase included a lecture on “Run-Hide-Fight” principles with departmental adaptations, followed by scenario-based discussion, and then safety walkthrough. Months later in the second phase, participants completed an active shooter simulation. An identical knowledge survey was collected before and after each phase along with descriptive analysis. Surveys were compared using paired t-test. Comfort levels were reported on a Likert scale and compared by paired t-test. Results: Paired t-tests confirmed a statistically significant difference in both active shooter knowledge and comfort levels. Participants showed retention of response knowledge and comfort with implementing response behaviors. Further descriptive analysis demonstrated effective fleeing and barricading, suggesting a real-life gain of knowledge and comfort. Conclusion: A two-phased, multimodal training design for active shooter response was successful in increasing ED provider active shooter knowledge, comfort, retention, and effective response behaviors.

The Code Silver Exercise: a low-cost simulation alternative to prepare hospitals for an active shooter event

Mass-shooting incidents have been increasing in recent years and Code Silver—the hospital response to a person with a weapon such as an active shooter in many Provinces or States in North America—is quickly shifting from a theoretical safety measure to a realistic scenario for which hospitals must prepare their staff. A Code Silver Exercise (CSE) involving an independent mental practice exercise with written responses to scenarios and questions, followed by a facilitated debrief with all participants, was conceptualized and trialled for feasibility and efficacy. The CSE was piloted as a quality improvement and emergency preparedness initiative in three different settings including in situ within a hospital Emergency Department or Intensive Care Unit, offsite in a large conference room workshop, and online via virtual platform. These sessions took place in 4 different cities in Canada and included 3 academic teaching hospitals. Participants of the in situ and virtual CSE completed pre- and post-simulation surveys which showed improved understanding of Code Silver protocols following participation.The CSE is a reproducible simulation alternative, designed to operationalize a Code Silver policy at a large healthcare institution in a sustainable way. This training model can be administered in multiple settings in-person (in situ or offsite), and virtually, making it versatile and easily accessible for participants. This exercise enables participants to mentally rehearse practical responses to an active shooter in their unique work environments and to discuss ethical and medical-legal implications of their responses during a facilitated debrief with fellow healthcare providers. Implementation of a CSE for training in hospitals may help staff to create a mental schema prior to an active shooter event, and thus indirectly improve the chances of survivability in the event of a real active shooter situation.

Preparedness of senior centers for active shooter incidents

Objective: The main objective was to evaluate the preparedness of senior centers (SCs) for active shooter (AS) events and test the hypothesis that most SCs were not organized to properly handle AS incidents.Design: A cross-sectional study based on questionnaire with quantitative measures.Setting: A questionnaire-based multistate survey of SC Directors (SCDs) of public and private SCs. Participants: SCs were included upon receipt of answers from SCDs to questionnaire-based survey, resulting in 139 SCs from Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Maryland, Indiana, Illinois, New York, and West Virginia.Main outcome measure: SCs, SCDs, and SCs’ staff preparedness and vulnerability to an AS event.Results: Over half (56 percent) of SCDs replied that their center was not prepared for an AS event. A significant (p 0.01) association was found between the SCD’s perception of being prepared and the availability of a formal AS preventive policy. The lack of panic buttons and surveillance cameras was significantly (p 0.01) associated with the feeling of inability by SCDs to respond effectively to an AS event. Those SCDs who were confident about their AS preparedness felt significantly (p 0.01) better prepared to respond to an AS incident. Personal interviews with content experts agreed that all SCDs should take steps to develop an official AS preparedness policy, but its implementation should be the direct responsibility of local policymakers and legislators.Conclusions: Most SDCs and SCs are unprepared for AS incidents. SCDs should review or develop specific recommendations and implement plans for a better preparedness of SCs and SCDs for AS events. Considering the inherent high vulnerability of older adults, there is an urgent need to have such AS policy in place.

Expanding Research on Investigations of Officer-Involved Shootings: An Experimental Evaluation of Question Timing on Police Officers’ Memory Recall

The timing of an investigation after an officer-involved shooting (OIS) is influenced by conflicting forces. The public demands expedited resolution, but police officers are provided several protections that can delay investigations of their actions. This study conducts a randomized experiment to determine the impact of question timing after an OIS on the accuracy of police officers’ memory recall. Officers were randomly assigned to one of two groups. The treatment group completed a questionnaire after participating in a live-action, active shooter training scenario and again 2 days later, whereas the control group only completed the questionnaire 2 days later. Our findings suggest the timing of interviews after training did not influence officers’ recall of the scenario. There is little empirical understanding of how police officers reconstruct OIS events; further interdisciplinary research can help clarify these cognitive processes. This research could strengthen a traditional pathway to provide accountability for officers through investigations.