MRI Event Ready™ First Response Course
Preparing Event Staff to Recognise, Respond and Escalate in Mass Gathering Environments
Course Overview
The MRI Event Ready™ First Response Course is a practical three-hour education programme designed specifically for personnel working in mass gathering and event environments.
Unlike traditional first aid training, Event Ready™ focuses on the unique challenges encountered at concerts, festivals, sporting fixtures, exhibitions, community events, and other large public gatherings. Participants develop the skills to recognise emerging medical and safety concerns early, provide safe initial support within their role, and work effectively alongside professional medical teams until advanced care arrives.
The programme has been developed by Medical Response Industries (MRI) using real-world operational experience gained from providing healthcare at major events throughout New Zealand. It combines evidence-informed teaching, realistic event scenarios, interactive discussions and practical activities.
The emphasis is on recognition rather than treatment, early escalation rather than delayed intervention, and working as part of an integrated event response system.
Who Should Attend?
- Security personnel
- Event staff and supervisors
- Crowd care and welfare teams
- Venue personnel
- Hospitality staff
- Volunteers
- Traffic management personnel
- Event organisers
- Festival crews
- Sports event staff
- Community event volunteers
- Production and operations teams
- Health and Safety representatives
- Emergency management teams
Course Purpose
- Recognise early signs of medical deterioration
- Maintain personal, patient and crowd safety
- Understand role boundaries
- Communicate effectively with medical teams
- Support patients until advanced care arrives
- Contribute to coordinated event responses
- Reduce preventable deterioration through early recognition and escalation
Learning Outcomes
- Conduct dynamic scene assessments and provide scene management in an emergency
- Recognise intoxication, overdose, heat illness, hypothermia, mental distress and collapse
- Working collaboratively with event medical teams
- Assist with patient access & egress, carry sheets and safe manual handling principles in an emergency
- Recognise crowd safety risks and crowd crush indicators
- Provide effective radio communication in an emergency
- Introduction to mass casualty incidents
Course Topics
- Introduction to event healthcare
- Understanding the event medical system
- Scene assessment and personal safety
- Communication with medical teams
- Alcohol and drug-related presentations
- Heat illness
- Hypothermia
- Mental distress
- Crowd safety and crush awareness
- Manual handling and carry sheets
- Patient extrication
- Incident escalation
- Practical scenarios
- Introduction to mass casualty scenarios
Course Delivery
Delivered over approximately three hours using facilitated discussion, practical demonstrations, scenario-based learning, group activities, case examples and structured debriefs.
Optional First Aid Qualification
The Event Ready™ First Response Course can be delivered as a standalone programme or combined with NZQA Unit Standards 6402 (Provide Basic Life Support), 6401 (Provide First Aid) and 6400 (Manage First Aid in Emergency Situations). This provides nationally recognised first aid alongside MRI's specialist event response training.
Benefits for Organisations
- Earlier recognition of deteriorating patients
- Improved coordination with medical teams
- Safer event responses
- Enhanced crowd safety and crush awareness
- Greater staff confidence
- Improved patient outcomes through early escalation
Why Choose MRI?
Medical Response Industries is a specialist provider of event healthcare services across New Zealand. Event Ready™ has been designed by experienced event clinicians, educators and operational leaders to prepare staff for the realities of responding safely and effectively in complex event environments.