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Mass-Gathering Medical Care: Retrospective Analysis of Patient Presentations over Five Years at a Multi-Day Mass Gathering

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 June 2012

William D. Grant ,
Nicholas E. Nacca ,
Louise A. Prince  and
Jay M. Scott
William D. Grant
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, State University of New York Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, New York USA
Nicholas E. Nacca*
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, State University of New York Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, New York USA
Louise A. Prince
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, State University of New York Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, New York USA
Jay M. Scott
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, State University of New York Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, New York USA
*
917 Madison Street #114 Syracuse, New York 13210 USA
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Abstract

Introduction:

There is a scarcity of analytical data regarding mass-gathering medical care. The purpose of this study was to identify and evaluate the range and nature of illness and injury for patrons of an annual, multi-day, mass gathering.

Methods:

Encounter data from all patients seen by emergency physicians at the New York State Fair Infirmary during the past five years were analyzed. From these data, a category list was consolidated to 36 reasons for the visit based on chief complaint, nursing notes, and physician notes. The most common reasons for being seen by a physician were analyzed to determine age and gender discrepancies.

Results:

The average number of attendees at the Fair per year from 2004–2008 was 950,973. Emergency physicians evaluated a total of 2,075 patients from 2004–2008. The average patient presentation rate over the past four years (2005–2008) was 4.8 ±1.1/10,000 patrons. The average transport to hospital rate over the past four years was 2.7 ±1.1/100,000 patrons. The average age of all patients seen was 34.4 ±21.6 years, and 58.1% of the patients were female. The most common reasons to seek medical attention included: dehydration/heat-related illness (11.4%); abrasion/laceration (10.6%); and fall-related injury (10.2%). Two groups, dehydration/heat-related illness 74% (t (4) = 2.90, p <0.05), and fall-related injury (68%; t (4) = 5.17, p <0.05) were disproportionately female. There also was a direct relationship between age and female gender within the fall-related injury category (χ2 (1, n = 213) = 11.41, p <0.05).

Conclusions:

Patron data from fairs and expositions is a valuable resource for studying mass-gathering medical care. A majority (58%) of patients seen at the infirmary were female. The most common reason for being seen was dehydration/ heat-related illness, which heavily favored females, but favored no age groups. The abrasion/laceration category did not contribute to the gender discrepancy. Patients who fell tended to be females >40 years of age. Further analysis is required to determine the reason for the gender discrepancies. Planners of multi-day mass gatherings should develop public education programs and evaluate their impact on the at-risk populations identified by this analysis.

Keywords

crowdemergency medical servicesexpositioneventfestivalfirst aidinfirmarymass gatheringmass-gathering medicinemulti-day mass gatheringprehospitalplanningpresentation ratepublicspecial eventstate fairtransport rate
Type
Case Report
Information
Prehospital and Disaster Medicine , Volume 25 , Issue 2 , April 2010 , pp. 183 - 187
Copyright
Copyright © World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine 2010

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