Holy Shroud Exhibition 2010: health services during a 40-day mass-gathering event

Mass-gathering events require varying types and amounts of medical resources to deal with patient presentations as well as careful planning for environmental health management. The Holy Shroud Exhibition was hosted in Torino, Italy, between April and May 2010. The venue was a unique mass-gathering event which lasted several weeks. It was held in a limited area in the center of the city and it was attended by a large and heterogeneous population. A dedicated Health Care Service was created for the event.

This study is a retrospective analysis of clinical presentations of patients who were managed by the Medical Services during the event. The main study outcomes included Patient Presentation Rate (PPR), type of injuries and illnesses, and the Transport to Hospital Rate (TTHR).

The PPR and TTHR were both low (0.27 and 0.039 respectively). The majority of patients presented with low severity codes and no sudden cardiac death (SCD) or cardiac arrest occurred. Cardiac and trauma emergencies were most frequent categories of presentation. A number of pediatric patients (19.37%) were treated by the event Medical Service. Approximately two million persons participated in the 40-day event.

The experience for this 40-day event supported having an on-site, organized, dedicated Medical Service that decreased overcrowding of the local Emergency Medical System and hospitals. It is recommended that, for such events, there be recruitment of emergency physicians with experience in mass-gathering events, recruitment of pediatricians, and training for professionals during the planning process.