Bert Mandelbaum, MD, is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon and the co-chair
of medical affairs for the Cedars-Sinai Kerlan-Jobe Institute in Los Angeles.
He believes that physicians must use their platform to advocate for gun control.
Dr. Mandelbaum completed his orthopedic surgery residency training at The
Johns Hopkins Hospital in inner-city Baltimore. Guns were a major part
of the city's culture, and patients came into the hospital with gunshot
wounds every day. "There were times the outside world came into the
inside," Dr. Mandelbaum said. "Once a man came in and started
shooting — a triage nurse and I hid under a desk. I remember it
like it was yesterday, the sound of the bullets pinging on the metal."
"We're a civilized country," he said, but according to a
study in
The Journal of Trauma: Injury, Infection, and Critical Care, the U.S. has approximately 20 times the rate of gun deaths compared to
high-income countries with guns and strong gun control. "Some consider
it more important to protect the right to have guns than to worry about
the kids endangered by those guns. After the Parkland shooting and many
other school shootings, kids worry about becoming victims of gun violence
while sitting in classrooms."
Dr. Mandelbaum believes gun violence stems from the broader culture and
the policies that are — or aren't — in place. "For
me, this has nothing to do with hunting deer or owning a rifle."
Guns have the potential to create tremendous damage, "and we don't
pay them enough respect. We have to approach this pragmatically. I'm
not out to take away peoples' hunting guns, their private collection
— my focus is on keeping assault weapons out of the hands of the
general population."
He believes that gun violence is due to mental health issues, "the
logistics of who gets a gun in their hand," and the role of the NRA
and gun manufacturers. However, Dr. Mandelbaum advises physicians not
to approach gun control from a political standpoint, but rather a population
health standpoint. "We need to focus our efforts on how to make gun
ownership safe. It's such a taboo to talk about training and gun safety,
and we have to call it as it is," he said. "We took the Hippocratic
Oath to look out for the best interests of our patients — and speaking
out is the best thing we can do to look out for our patients."
Dr. Mandelbaum advises physicians to urge their colleagues to speak out
on this issue without fear of criticism. The medical field needs a bigger
voice, Dr. Mandelbaum claims, but it does not have strong leadership.
"Physicians should be leaders, and we do have a voice. We can work
to create better policies, procedures and laws. When you really think
about it, we are speaking out for future generations. It's really
for the children."
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