Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, Vol 56(5), Oct 2025, 371-377; doi:10.1037/pro0000639
Suicide deaths, especially deaths by firearms, have been steadily increasing over the last 20 years nationally. The increase in suicide by firearm is partly contributed by easily accessible firearms in the United States. One method that health care providers can use to address an at-risk individual’s access to firearms is through lethal means counseling. Research has shown that evidence-based training, such as Counseling on Access to Lethal Means (CALM), is underutilized in health care settings. Based on current science and suicide prevention practice, as well as a case study of an implementation of CALM on our college campus, we recommend four approaches to closing this implementation gap. Our recommendations include integrating CALM training in health professionals’ graduate school curriculum, adapting CALM to cultural contexts such as including state firearm storage laws, providing flexible training options, and more rigorous evaluations of CALM that incorporate state and organizational policies. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)