Mass gatherings: the latest WHO guidelines
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‘You don’t know what you’ve got, till it’s gone’ may be a line in a 50-year-old Joni Mitchell song but those words have never rung truer than in today’s world of living in a pandemic.
The collapse of the event industry has many of us waiting with bated breath to see how it is going to continue. Seeing other countries deal with the aftermath, from the rise of the drive-in, to ‘behind closed doors’ sporting events, it’s become clear that the industry should be ahead of the game to ensure a smooth, and more importantly, safe delivery.
With that in mind, the World Health Organisation has updated its guidelines for mass gatherings. Join us as we summarise what this could mean for the industry . . .
Events are so much more than recreational
It’s something that many of us already know but the WHO is keen to point out the need for events as they play an important part in the psychological wellbeing of attendees. Not to mention the potential to create employment and a legacy well after the last ticket has sold. It’s reassuring to know that events aren’t simply being pigeonholed or brushed aside.
Not all events will be treated equally
The guidelines raise the possibilities of authorities assessing the importance and necessity (as well as the political, cultural, social, and economic implications) of an event for them to be considered in taking place (provided all associated public health risks are addressed).
Risk assessments, now more than ever, will be vital
As always the Risk Assessment is vital to any event, however, the key to this will be the input of not only the event organiser, but the local, national and any relevant (emergencies, transport, safety, and security, etc.) authorities based on the following:
The host country’s existing regulations on public health and social measures to control the spread of COVID-19.
An evaluation of the likelihood that the event may contribute to the spread of COVID-19 and how that would affect health services capacity.
The ability to implement actions that can reduce the risks associated with the event.
Questions to be added to your risk assessment are as follows:
Will the event take place in a host country with documented active local transmission (community spread)?
Will the event include participants from countries that have documented active local transmission (community spread)?
Will the event include a significant number of participants at higher risk of severe disease (e.g. people >65 years of age, people with underlying health conditions)?
Will the event be primarily indoors and/or will people be in close contact with one another for a prolonged period?
Of course, events organisers will need to be aware of the host country’s updated guidelines regarding public health and social measures. You should also be aware of the effect that loosened rules may have on a social level to ensure a thorough analysis.
Furthermore, it’s important to note the following guidelines when putting together your event:
Evaluation
Is the venue suitable in terms of location, size/type, indoor/outdoor, crowd density etc?
What is the age, health status, provenance, and the travel needs etc of those likely to attend?
What are the event activities and what will the contact/interaction be like?
How long will people be close to each other?
What policies, resources, and capacities do your local health authorities have to detect and manage cases of COVID-19?
Planning
Forming and maintaining strong communications with all relevant health authorities and stakeholders.
Ensuring the event plan is aligned with wider national emergency preparedness and response plans.
Being prepared for the detection and monitoring of COVID-19 as well as a plan of action to be followed.
Sufficient resources should be implemented including PPE and isolation rooms.
Operational
From a venue’s perspective, the event organiser should consider whether or not the event could be hosted online/become a hybrid, be shortened, have a lower capacity, or be held outdoors. Naturally, hygiene is crucial so ensuring handwashing stations are available as well as regular cleaning of the venue itself is timetabled.
For the participants, it’s important to double down on measures they should already be familiar with, from social distancing to advising those at high risk to reconsider attending in a physical capacity.
Throughout, communication should be strong with visual reminders in line with all national policies including:
Preventative measures
Actionable measures for people developing symptoms
Visual reminders of appropriate PPE
Surveillance of attendees to detect and manage the possibility of developing symptoms is vital and should include the following:
Isolating facilities
Arrangements to be made with local and national authorities regarding cases identified at the event
Post-event
As always, communication with your attendees is important but, should they develop symptoms, it’s also vital to liaise with your authorities as well as the participant's home city or country. It should also be encouraged for individuals who develop symptoms to contact public health authorities about their potential exposure.
As with any event, reviewing and evaluating it (whether your own or anyone else's) is important to improve best practices.
Wrap up
While this does seem like a step forward, it’s important to note that we’re entering uncharted territory and it’s bound to be stormy waters for a while. These latest guidelines (as many of the official guidelines have been) are open to interpretation which, quite rightly, should make you cautious, however, if we adapt, work collaboratively and learn from each other, there may just be events on the horizon.
Source: The World Health Organisation (WHO). Download the full report here.
Update 17 June 2020
Since posting this article, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has also updated its guidelines on events and gatherings including further details on the operational side. Key considerations are the promotion of healthy behaviours at events through the usage of masks, hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette as well as maintaining healthy environments and operations. It would well be worth considering using both sets of guidelines to ensure that every angle is considered in delivering a safe event.