About Pathways 2 Safety (P2S)
P2S is a skills-based training for behavioral health providers—including social workers, nurses, psychologists, mental health professionals, peer support specialists, and marriage and family therapists—who work with individuals and families. The training prepares clinicians to engage in respectful, client-centered conversations about firearm safety and secure storage as part of routine care.
Developed in consultation with clinicians across Washington State, P2S includes educational materials on firearm safety and storage devices. The training is interactive, applicable across community-based settings, and integrates inclusive language across firearm ownership cultures. It uses context-sensitive examples and addresses structural factors that influence firearm access to support clinician skill development.
The training includes:
- An overview of firearm terminology and storage options
- A summary of relevant Washington State policies
- A structured counseling framework for nonjudgmental, supportive conversations
- Applied examples tailored to behavioral health practice
- Hands-on practice with locks and training aids
- Provider- and client-facing resource materials
- Post-training skills practice with an AI-powered simulated client
Participants also receive badge tags, simulated counseling demonstrations, training kits, and hands-on practice with storage devices. Organizations may also purchase an allocation of lockboxes, cable locks, and trigger locks for distribution to clients at-cost thanks to a generous partnership with Sport Co.
The three-hour training consists of five modules:
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Background and Rationale
- Public health and social justice context of firearm injury
- The clinician’s role in firearm injury prevention
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Firearm Foundations
- Firearm types and terminology
- Universal firearm safety principles
- Secure storage methods
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Options for Intervention
- Strategies to reduce access, including secure storage, voluntary transfers, and legal tools such as Extreme Risk Protection Orders (ERPOs)
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The PATHS Framework
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Case Examples and Skill Building
- Working with caregivers of adolescents
- Working with clients with suicidal ideation
- Working with older adults with cognitive decline/dementia
- Working with victim-survivors of intimate partner violence
In an evaluation of P2S, pre- and post-training surveys demonstrated improvements in knowledge, confidence, and counseling skills related to firearm access conversations.
Prior lethal means safety training was uncommon: 58.5% of participants reported no previous training, and prior exposure was typically brief or inconsistent in depth.
Evaluation findings included:
- A 26% increase in firearm safety knowledge scores
- A 67% increase in confidence in counseling clients about firearm safety
- Greater likelihood of discussing firearm safety routinely, not only with high-risk clients
- Significantly improved counseling skills, based on observed simulated counseling sessions.