Roles and powers of medical services at events

At events, medical services provide planned first-line medical care and support the handover of patients to the public emergency medical service. Commissioning them does not, however, give them general decision-making authority over event safety or its approval.

When and to what extent

For town festivals, concerts, funfairs and sporting events, an event-specific medical service may be required. Whether and to what extent it must be provided depends on the relevant legal provisions, possible official conditions and the specific risk assessment.

The following are particularly relevant for planning:

• visitor numbers and structure
• event duration
• size of the site
• expected medical cases
• accessibility and transport routes

Three areas of responsibility

Three areas of responsibility must be distinguished:

• Medical care: Medical services provide first aid and further medical care within the scope of their qualification. They look after patients and, where necessary, arrange for the public emergency medical service to be alerted.
• Professional input: Those responsible for the medical service can contribute requirements for personnel, equipment, treatment areas, accessibility and patient handover to event planning. The specific equipment must match the intended care mandate.
• Operational cooperation: Findings about medical incidents can be relevant to the security organisation, for example in cases of heat, crowding or a cluster of injuries. The passing on of such information must be organisationally regulated and take data protection requirements into account.

Demarcation

A commissioned medical service is not automatically the competent body for event evacuations, general safety announcements or ordering event-related protective measures.

Likewise, a distinction must be made between the event-specific medical service and the public emergency medical service. Their tasks, organisation and powers are based on different legal and organisational foundations.

Conclusion

Medical services are an important part of medical care at events. Their professional responsibility mainly concerns patient care and integration into the medical emergency organisation. This does not create a general responsibility for the safety management of the event.

More on this: Safety regulations for open-air events and events in public space.

Note: research status 8 November 2026. General orientation; the statements have not been checked against the original regulations. Not legal advice: the respective state law and the conditions in the individual case are decisive; in case of doubt, the competent authorities and specialists decide. No function, response time or certification of MOVETOS OPS is promised.