TexasCHLforum.com

Jacob Staff wrote:My wife recently took our kids to a new pediatritian. I asked if anything was mentioned about firearms in the house. She said the Doc was reading from a list of questions and one of them was, "Do you have guns in your home?"

Wife "Yes, we have them locked in a safe."
Doc "This IS Texas, almost everyone has a gun." Then on to the next question.

Looks like we are on another list

The first thing I would have done is ask him if he had any firearms in his house. Then, no matter what he said, I would have told him that I don't answer questions like that myself.

Kalrog wrote:I think a slightly wrong impression has been given on this (probably my fault). This wasn't a questionnaire that we had to fill out or anything like that. It wasn't even really advice from the doctor. It is a standard "well child" pamphlet that the network produces for each of the recommended checkups that they hand to you essentially as you are leaving the office. It also records your child's basic vitals (height, weight, ...). I didn't have a chance to talk with the doctor about this - I never get to read them until I am already home. Hence my desire to do a letter to the network instead of talking with the specific doctor about it.

I would appreciate the wording of the expertise acknowledgment letter though.

Doesn't matter. If the doctor, or his staff, gives you the pamphlet, you have a right to know that they have expertise in that area.

I wouldn't bother trying to produce statistics or studies to refute what the pamphlet says. That kind of junk science doesn't rise to the level of needing to be refuted, and should not be so dignified.

So basically it's, "Doctor, what expertise qualifies you and/or your group to dispense advice in this field? The reason I ask is that I have looked over all of the diplomas you have on your office walls, and I didn't see anything related to firearms, firearm safety, the risks and benefits of gun ownership, or on how guns should be safely stored. So I'm wondering as to the extent of your knowledge and training in this area."

And then, no matter what he says in response, I would come back with something like, "You know doctor, the transmission on my Harley "clunks" when I shift it into first gear. Any idea why it would do that? Do you think you could take a look at it for me?"