Centre for Evidence-Based Practice, Belgian Red Cross, Mechelen, Belgium
Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Faculty of Medicine, KU Leuven Institute for Healthcare Policy, Leuven, Belgium.
Emerg Med J. 2022 Sep;39(9):708-711. doi: 10.1136/emermed-2021-211745. Epub 2022 Apr 7.
Adequate on-site first aid delivery at mass gatherings (MGs) is one of the cornerstones to ensure safe and healthy MGs. We investigated medical usage rates, frequency of triage categories and type of injury or medical complaint, among attendees at MGs in Belgium.
We analysed the Medical Triage and Registration Informatics System database, which includes prospectively collected person-level data regarding individuals visiting on-site posts at MGs in Belgium. MGs attended by >10 000 people and organised ≥5 times between 2009 and 2018 were included. We determined the proportion of patients in each triage category ('first aid' vs 'medical condition' vs 'medical emergency' vs 'no treatment') and each type of injury or medical complaint, and we calculated patient presentation rate (PPR) and transfer to hospital rate (TTHR).
Twenty-eight MGs, totalling 194 events, were included involving 148 265 patient visits. 'First aid' was the most common triage category (80%, n=118 514). The need for a nurse/physician ('medical condition'), and for the treatment of life-threatening conditions ('medical emergency') was rare (8.9%, n=13 052, and 0.6%, n=860, of all patient presentations, respectively), but remarkably higher during indoor electronic dance music (EDM) events (17.8% (n=26 391) and 4.0% (n=5930), of all patient presentations, respectively). 'Skin wounds' were the most common injury category (42.4%, n=62 275). 'Respiratory problems', 'neurological problems', 'intoxication', 'heart complaints' and 'gastrointestinal complaints' were more frequent during indoor (electronic) dance, whereas 'burns', 'fracture/contusion' and 'skin wounds' were higher during outdoor music, sports events and city festivals, respectively. PPR (per 10 000 attendees) was highest for outdoor EDM and outdoor music (median 130 (IQR 79) and 129 (IQR 104), respectively). TTHR (per 10 000 attendees) was highest for indoor EDM (median 4.4 (IQR 8.5)).
Medical usage rates, proportion of patients in triage and injury or medical complaint categories varied across different MG categories, suggesting opportunities for planning medical coverage at these events.
在大型集会（MGs）中提供充分的现场急救是确保集会安全和健康的基石之一。我们调查了在比利时举行的 MGs 中参加者的医疗使用率、分诊类别频率以及伤害或医疗投诉类型。
我们分析了医疗分诊和注册信息系统数据库，该数据库包含了关于在比利时 MGs 现场岗位就诊的个人的前瞻性收集的人员水平数据。我们纳入了 2009 年至 2018 年间参加人数超过 10000 人且组织次数不少于 5 次的 MGs。我们确定了每个分诊类别（“急救”与“医疗状况”与“医疗紧急情况”与“无需治疗”）和每种伤害或医疗投诉的患者比例，并计算了患者就诊率（PPR）和转院率（TTHR）。
共纳入了 28 个 MGs，总计 194 次事件，涉及 148265 人次就诊。“急救”是最常见的分诊类别（80%，n=118514）。对护士/医生的需求（“医疗状况”）和对危及生命情况的治疗（“医疗紧急情况”）很少见（所有患者就诊的 8.9%，n=13052，和 0.6%，n=860），但在室内电子舞曲（EDM）活动中却明显更高（所有患者就诊的 17.8%（n=26391）和 4.0%（n=5930））。“皮肤伤口”是最常见的伤害类别（42.4%，n=62275）。“呼吸问题”、“神经问题”、“中毒”、“心脏投诉”和“胃肠道投诉”在室内（电子）舞蹈中更为常见，而“烧伤”、“骨折/瘀伤”和“皮肤伤口”在户外音乐、运动赛事和城市节日中更为常见。PPR（每 10000 名参与者）在户外 EDM 和户外音乐中最高（中位数 130（IQR 79）和 129（IQR 104））。TTHR（每 10000 名参与者）在室内 EDM 中最高（中位数 4.4（IQR 8.5））。
不同 MGs 类别之间的医疗使用率、分诊患者比例和伤害或医疗投诉类别有所不同，这表明在这些活动中规划医疗服务有机会。
