Variables Influencing Medical Usage Rates, Injury Patterns, and Levels of Care for Mass Gatherings

Abstract

Objectives:Mass gatherings create difficult environments for which to plan emergency medical responses. The purpose of this study was to identify those variables that are associated with increased medical usage rates (MURs) and certain injury patterns that can be used to facilitate the planning process.Methods:Patient information collected at three types of mass gatherings (professional American football and baseball games and rock concerts) over a three-year period was reviewed retrospectively. Specific variables were abstracted: (1) event type; (2) gender; (3) age; (4) weather; and (5) attendance. All 216 events (total attendance9,708,567) studied were held in the same metropolitan region. All MURs are reported as patients per 10,000 (PPTT).Results:The 5,899 patient encounters yielded a MUR of 6.1 PPTT. Patient encounters totaled 3,659 for baseball games (4.85 PPTT), 1,204 for football games (6.75 PPTT), and 1,036 for rock concerts (30 PPTT). The MUR for Location A concerts (no mosh pits) was 7.49 PPTT, whereas the MUR for the one Location B concert (with mosh pits) was110 PPTT. The MUR for Location A concerts was higher than for baseball, but not football games (p = 0.005). Gender distribution was equal among patrons seeking medical care. The mean values for patient ages were 29 years at baseball games, 33 years at football games, and 20 years at concerts. The MUR at events held when the apparent temperature was £80°F significantly lower statistically than that at events conducted at temperatures <80°F were (18°C) (4.90 vs. 8.10 PPTT (p = 0.005)). The occurrence of precipitation and increased attendance did not predict an increased MUR. Medical care was sought mostly for minor/basic-level care (84%) and less so for advanced-level care (16%). Medical cases occurred more often atsporting events (69%), and were more common than were cases with traumatic injuries (31%). Concerts with precipitation and rock concerts had a positive association withthe incidence of trauma and the incidence of injuries; whereas age and gender were not associated with medical or traumatic diagnoses.Conclusions:Event type and apparent temperature were the variables that best predicted MUR as well as specific injury patterns and levels of care.

Fire Jumpers: Description of Burns and Traumatic Injuries from a Spontaneous Mass Gathering and Celebratory Riot

“…However, because most mass gatherings are inherently variable and unique, analysis of our results must carefully examine the specific circumstances of the event for complete interpretation. For example, our MUR of 11.2 PPTT is higher than published reports of medical usage at baseball and football games (MURs of 4.85 PPTT and 6.75 PPTT, respectively), a result that is not surprising given that mobile crowds without well-defined event boundaries have been shown to have higher rates of patient presentations for medical care than fixed-location events with stationary seating (8,9,12). Our results are in contrast to the generally higher MURs at rock concerts, which also have larger proportions of young participants and high rates of drug-and alcohol-associated injuries (11,13,14).…”

Forecasting Medical Work at Mass-Gathering Events: Predictive Model Versus Retrospective Review

“…However, the need is to be able to predict medical workload at events, and while this is somewhat dependent on crowd size, 2,3 there are other factors. 8 The predictions made using the Zeitz method not only varied depending on crowd size (and hence day of the week), but also identified differing crowd demographics on different days that had an additional influence on the number of patients. Historical data has shown that medical workload is highest on a mid-week day with half-price admission, even though the largest crowds attend at weekends.…”

Medical Care at Mass Gatherings: Emergency Medical Services at Large-Scale Rave Events

“…In the United States, the term Medical Usage Rate (MUR) is commonly used, and is defined as the number of first aid attendees per 10,000 event visitors. 4,5 In a nine-year survey at raves in the Netherlands, the average MUR was 79 (range = 59-170). 6 Other countries use Patient Presentation Rates (PPRs), which are calculated as the number of patients per 1,000 event visitors presenting to on-site health care services.…”