The Bridge Between Need and Access: Distribution of Trauma Care Facilities at a Religious Mega Mass Gathering

Abstract

Participating in mass gatherings puts people at risk of incidents. The distribution of resources should be based on need. The purpose of this study was to investigate the distribution of trauma care facilities based on need and access at a religious mass gathering in Iran. This national cross-sectional study is based on obtained data including the number of visits to health centers (NVHC) and the number of injuries visits health center (NIVHC) as needs and the number of physicians, paramedic, ambulance, and treatment center as access in border cities of Iran and Iraq in 2016. Gini coefficient, Lorenz curve and the Pearson correlation coefficient were applied to measure the level of equality in the distribution of trauma care and the correlation between access and need. The facilities were relatively distributed equally at the border towns in Iran; however, were not equally distributed in Iraq. There is no significant association between the paramedic for NIVHC and ambulance for NIVHC and NVHC. Moreover, there was a significant association between physician for NIVHC and NVHC, a paramedic for NVHC, and treatment centers for NIVHC and NVHC. The consequences of incidents could be reduced if distributing trauma care facilities equals at mass gatherings. © 2019 Tehran University of Medical Sciences. All rights reserved. Acta Med Iran 2019;57(7):442-447.