This study analyzed patient presentations at 26 outdoor music festivals in Australia between 2010-2015. Of 4950 total presentations, most were female (62.4%) and aged 25 or younger (78.3%). The majority (55.9%) presented with illness, predominantly headaches (52.9%). Females were more likely to present with illness than males. Injuries accounted for 14.1% of presentations, with superficial lacerations and sprains most common. Environmental presentations involving alcohol (32.8%) and substances (17.7%) were highest. Many presentations involved minor illnesses and injuries that were potentially preventable through improved prevention strategies.

2. Understanding the characteristics of patient
presentations at outdoor music festivals
Associate Professor Alison Hutton
Mr Jamie Ranse
Professor Paul Arbon

3. Aim of the study
• To understand the
characteristics of
people who present as
patients to on-site
health care at outdoor
music festivals in
Australia
• Determine the relative
proportion and type of
injury

4. Design and Setting
• Retrospective review of patient report forms
• 26 OMF
• Four different states of Australia
• Data transcribed to Excel
• Ranse and Hutton minimum data set;
– Illness;
– Injury;
– Environmental;
– Mental Health

5. Data analysis
• Proportions were presented as percentages
• Variations in proportions Fisher exact test
• Binary logistic regression model
• Adjusted for potential clustering effects because
PPs was heterogeneous for different events
• Regression coefficients were expressed as
adjusted odds ratios (OR)
• OR were considered statistically significant if
their 95% confidence interval (CI) did not include
unity

6. Demographics
• 4950 presentations for health care, almost
two thirds were female (n=3087, 62.4%)
• The mean age (±SD) of all patient
presentations was 21.3 (±5.8) years
• The majority of patients (n=3875, 78.3%)
were ≤25 years of age

7. Illness
• The majority of patient presentations (n=2766,
55.9%) presented with illness related concerns
• The risk of illness was 1.7 times (OR=1.71; 95%
CI 1.51-1.94; p<0.001) higher for females than
males in the ≤25 year age group
• Most common presenting problem was
headache (n=1389, 52.9%).
• Pain (n=264 10%), asthma (n=216 8.2%), and
nausea and vomiting (n=211 8%)

8. Injury
• The risk of a female sustaining an injury was almost half
(OR=0.54; 95% CI 0.47-0.62; p<0.001) that of males
• Age was not a significant factor in predicting injury
• The main types of injury presentations were superficial
lacerations (n=281; 20.4%); sprain or strains (n=268;
19.2%), and head injuries (concussion) (n=168; 11.9%)
• Lower proportion of females presenting with dislocations
and superficial lacerations than males
• Crushing injuries; blisters and foreign bodies; external to
eye was significantly higher for females than males

9. Environment
• Lower for patient presentations aged >25 years (OR=0.55;
95% CI 0.41-0.72; p<0.001)
• Alcohol related presentations most common
(n=250 32.8%)
• Substance related (n=135 17.7%),
• Combined alcohol and substance use (n=125 16.4%)
• Both heat exhaustion and substance use were statistically
significant when compared to gender
• Heat exhaustion more prevalent for females (p=<0.001),
while substance related presentations more prevalent for
males (p=<0.001)

10. Mental Health
• Gender didn’t demonstrate a significant
risk for mental health related
presentations
• 29 cases overall – average of one per
event
• MH recorded as a presentation
signifigant

11. Outcome
• Most patient presentations assessed by medical
teams; treated and returned back to the event
(n=2421; 48.9%)
• Environmental-related category highest transport to
hospital rate
– 9.1% (n=71) being referred to hospital
– 12.5% (n=97) referred to a doctor and
– 17.0% (n=132) were discharged home

12. Implications for Practice
• Previous findings confirmed
• Illness category – presenting signs and
symptoms dominate
• Improved understanding of diagnosis needed
• Further scope for preventable presentations,
such as headaches
• Increased understanding of injury leads to
effective prevention strategies

13. Conclusions
• Large number of drug and alcohol
presentations transferred to hospital
• Many minor illness and injuries
preventable
• Increased focus on prevention
strategies required
• Need a more accurate picture of
audience demographic