The Dangers of Taking ‘T in the Park’

Abstract

This paper describes how medical cover was provided for a large music festival attended by 70,000 people. The organisational structure of the team and the workload encountered are related. As well as illustrating the value of on-site medical cover in minimising the workload for local health services, some specific hazards of such events are discussed.

The largest mass gathering

“…Planning is essential to provide medical support at a mass gathering. Low hospital referral rates from events in the UK (0.45%9-3%14) confirm the importance of on-site medical cover in minimising the workload for local health services. Yet there is little guidance on medical facilities required.…”

“…These typically result from crushing against crowd barriers, falls, and assaults—although missiles (urine filled plastic beer bottles and complimentary wooden “records”) were a common cause of head injury (5.7% of all attenders) 7. In one study severe trauma occurred in 1.4% of attenders 9. The most frequent medical complaint is headache (22.7%7-31.6%5), which may affect both staff and crowd members.…”

“…At two open air music events in the United Kingdom a primary diagnosis of alcohol intoxication was made in about 4% of cases 7 9. The casualty rate was reduced from 2 per 1000 to 1 per 1000 during the Euro ‘96 football competition when alcohol was banned at Wembley stadium 10…”

“…In one study 14.5% of wounds required suturing or the application of steristrips or staples9—skills beyond a first aider or paramedic; a doctor or nurse present could avoid the need for hospital attendance. In the same study 25% of the wounds were cuts from glass, yet few venues can offer x ray facilities.…”

EMS Coverage of a Female-Only Event with 10,000 Attendees: Preparation and Implementation in One Week

“…The provision of emergency health services at public events provides unique challenges in the health care planning context. Health care at mass-gathering events has three aims: (1) providing primary care; (2) providing emergency care; and (3) responding to major incidents 1 …”