Mass gathering medicine

Mass gathering medicine, also known as event medicine, crowd medicine or mass gathering health,[1] is a field of medicine that explores the health effects/risks of mass gatherings and the strategies that contribute positively to effective health services delivery during these events.[2][3][4] The reason for the development of the field of medicine gives the fact that mass gatherings generate a higher incidence of injury and illness, may be the subject to a catastrophic accident or attack with large numbers of injured or dead persons.[5][6]

Mass Gathering Medicine is viewed as a niche field of prehospital care in emergency medicine at the University of British Columbia.[7]

Among factors influencing on the demand for the health care at mass gatherings are:[8]

  • the weather,
  • duration of the event,
  • if the crowd moves,
  • containment of the event (fenced/contained or not),
  • availability of alcohol/drugs,
  • the density of the crowd et al.,
  • possibility for spreading of communicable diseases[9]

Key purposes of Mass Gathering Medical Services at an event are:[10]

  • rapid access to the injured or ill patients,
  • effective stabilizing and transporting injured or ill patients,
  • on-site care for minor injuries and illnesses.

The Department of Global Alert and Response of the World Health Organization supports Member States hosting mass gatherings.[11] As the acknowledgement of growth in the area of Mass Gathering Medicine, there is a need for consistency in the research and evaluation of mass gathering events.[12] This is important because mass gatherings may impact on health services and having a collective understanding of the impact of mass gatherings on health services may mitigate any poor outcomes for patients.[13]

Mass gathering medicine support requires planning in advance.[14]

Medical journal The Lancet held a conference on Mass Gathering Medicine in October 2010 in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.[15]

In 2015, This Is Life with Lisa Ling filmed an episode featuring mass-gathering medicine with event medical specialists Dr. Andrew Bazos and Connor Fitzpatrick of CrowdRx, Inc.[16]

The inaugural Mass Gathering Medicine Summit was held in New York City on April 21–22, 2016.[17] The fourth annual Mass Gathering Medical Summit was held in Las Vegas on March 15–16, 2019.[17]

  1. ^ Lund, A.; Turris, S. A.; Bowles, R.; Steenkamp, M.; Hutton, A.; Ranse, J.; Arbon, P. (2014). "Mass-gathering Health Research Foundational Theory: Part 1 - Population Models for Mass Gatherings". Prehospital and Disaster Medicine. 29 (6): 648–654. doi:10.1017/S1049023X14001216. PMID 25400164. S2CID 206310964.
  2. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-06-10. Retrieved 2012-04-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. ^ Arbon, Paul (2007). "Mass-Gathering Medicine: A Review of the Evidence and Future Directions for Research". Prehospital and Disaster Medicine. 22 (2): 131–135. doi:10.1017/S1049023X00004507. hdl:2328/10117. PMID 17591185. S2CID 1092404.
  4. ^ "Public Health Preparedness for Mass Gatherings". Archived from the original on 2018-02-06. Retrieved 2010-11-04.
  5. ^ Franaszek, Jacek (1986). "Medical care at mass gatherings". Annals of Emergency Medicine. 15 (5): 600–601. doi:10.1016/S0196-0644(86)81003-4. PMID 3963544.
  6. ^ Thompson, James M.; Savoia, Gino; Powell, Gregory; Challis, EB; Law, Patricia (1991). "Level of medical care required for mass gatherings: The XV winter olympic games in Calgary, Canada". Annals of Emergency Medicine. 20 (4): 385–390. doi:10.1016/S0196-0644(05)81660-9. PMID 2003667.
  7. ^ Home | (archive) Mass Gathering Medicine Interest Group
  8. ^ Milsten, Andrew M.; Maguire, Brian J.; Bissell, Rick A.; Seaman, Kevin G. (2002). "Mass-Gathering Medical Care: A Review of the Literature". Prehospital and Disaster Medicine. 17 (3): 151–162. doi:10.1017/S1049023X00000388. PMID 12627919. S2CID 24799640.
  9. ^ "Communicable disease alert and response for mass gatherings" (PDF). Retrieved 2010-11-04.
  10. ^ De Lorenzo, Robert A. (1997). "Mass Gathering Medicine: A Review". Prehospital and Disaster Medicine. 12 (1): 68–72. doi:10.1017/S1049023X00037250. PMID 10166378.
  11. ^ "Mass Gatherings and Public Health" (PDF). 2007. Retrieved 2010-11-04.
  12. ^ Ranse, Jamie; Hutton, Alison (2012). "Minimum Data Set for Mass-Gathering Health Research and Evaluation: A Discussion Paper". Prehospital and Disaster Medicine (Submitted manuscript). 27 (6): 543–550. doi:10.1017/s1049023x12001288. PMID 23174040. S2CID 45404363.[permanent dead link‍]
  13. ^ Ranse, Jamie; Hutton, Alison; Keene, Toby; Lenson, Shane; Luther, Matt; Bost, Nerolie; Johnston, Amy N. B.; Crilly, Julia; Cannon, Matt; Jones, Nicole; Hayes, Courtney; Burke, Brandon (2017). "Health Service Impact from Mass Gatherings: A Systematic Literature Review". Prehospital and Disaster Medicine. 32 (1): 71–77. doi:10.1017/S1049023X16001199. PMID 27938460. S2CID 7103371.
  14. ^ http://sis.nlm.nih.gov/enviro/massgatherings.html Archived 2018-02-06 at the Wayback Machine Public Health Preparedness for Mass Gatherings
  15. ^ "Global Forum on Mass Gathering Medicine".
  16. ^ Home - CrowdRx: Event Medical Services
  17. ^ a b eventmedicinesummit