When hundreds or thousands of people gather for a multi-day event like your meeting, there's always a chance that an accident, illness, or medical emergency could occur. While a meeting planner usually can't control such an incident, you can control your level of preparedness. And if your meeting will be held at a convention center, it's crucial to partner with convention center personnel to ensure that all necessary safety preparations have been made. Safety should be addressed from the very beginning of the planning process, as you are selecting the site for your meeting.

"Ever since Sept. 11, I have been impressed with the volume of planners providing us with a copy of their emergency action plans," said Debbie Welsh, CMP, director of event management for the Colorado Convention Center (CCC). "Planners have been proactive in training their staff on their internal protocol as well as the facilities' basic protocols. It has also become a standard practice to request the emergency response plan from the facility."

In addition to an emergency response plan, most convention centers "have first-aid rooms that are either staffed by the building or are available for the show organizer to place an emergency medical technician (EMT) or first-aid person in," said Jennifer Hoff, vice president of operations and conferences for National Trade Productions Inc. "A lot of buildings require the show to provide first aid if they don't already have it in-house. And most facilities are also equipped with automatic external defibrillators (AEDs) in case of heart attacks."

For instance, at the CCC, an "Emergency Response Handout is provided to our clients at our pre-con meetings," Welsh said. "The issues surrounding emergencies including medical, fire alarm, and weather, should be summarized at the pre-con meeting so all staff and contractors are well informed." At its initial meeting with clients, the Phoenix Convention Center also provides event planners with a list of local hospitals and urgent care centers, in addition to proper procedures for emergencies.

Be adequately prepared for possible medical emergencies at your meeting by following these recommendations:

• Request the emergency plan from the convention center and share it internally with your own team.
• Find out what numbers and extensions should be dialed if an emergency occurs. In most cases, such as at the CCC, "the planner is instructed to contact their event manager or use a house phone to reach the security department," Welsh said. "The security department will radio dispatch to the paramedic on duty or call 911 if a paramedic is not on site."
• Make sure you are on radio with your center contact or able to reach them at all times.
• Hire first-aid personnel or EMTs if they are not included in the convention center contract. "Most facilities have emergency medical services (EMS) staff on site during the move-in, show dates, and move-out," said David Klutts, corporate director, risk management services for Freeman. "A great deal of the facilities employ off-duty first responders from local fire and police agencies." However, some facilities require planners to hire their own EMS staff, particularly if attendance numbers will reach a certain threshold.
• Hire a security company.
• Obtain emergency contact information for each attendee and exhibitor. Have all necessary contact information readily available in case an emergency occurs, and have this information in print in the show office.
• Make sure your home office is aware of what will be done on site and knows how to respond to inquiries.
• Pack one or more first-aid kits for your show office, registration area, and floor manager stations.
• Provide emergency procedures for on-site staff in their show materials.
• Include an area on your registration forms for attendees to note special dietary requirements, physical limitations, or disabilities for which you need to prepare.
• Identify locations of Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) throughout the facility.
• Enlist the help of your session speakers to ensure a safe meeting. "Strongly urge each presenter to begin his or her session with an announcement locating the nearest emergency exit and to honor all instructions by emergency personnel," said Kevin Mattingly, operations superintendent for the Phoenix Convention Center (PCC).

Safety Equipment and Emergency Response

AEDs have become somewhat standard in convention centers and other public facilities because of their unique ability to stop heart attacks. While you should check to make sure your convention center has one or more AEDs, also look for the following safety tools:

• blood borne pathogen clean-up kits
• a functional surveillance system for security and safety
• handicap accessibility to meeting rooms, stages, and elevators
• availability of basic medical supplies such as bandages, ice packs, and burn creams
• medical personnel properly trained with the inventory of medical equipment necessary for medical emergencies
• fully stocked first-aid rooms within close proximity to the meeting rooms and exhibit hall
• a thorough and concise Emergency Response Plan.

In case an emergency does occur at your meeting, determine in advance how you will respond. The following tips can help you plot your strategy:

• Multi-task. "Immediately respond to the situation while simultaneously contacting the first aid or EMT contact on radio, or the building contact to alert them of the situation," Hoff said. "If the person is OK to walk to the first-aid room, I would escort them there, or if they cannot leave, wait with them while the first-aid or EMT contact arrives to the scene."
• (Usually) don't call 911. While it may seem surprising, "standard protocol [in convention centers] is that no one is to contact 911; that should be the responsibility of the building contact or the in-house first aid or security [team]," Hoff said. "Once an incident occurs, someone needs to immediately alert the building contact so that they can get 911 there, as they know how to reference the location within the building to the EMT." While this protocol is standard in many convention centers, it's not universal so check with your facility contact to find out if it applies there.
• Trust the experts. "Show management should never attempt to diagnose an ill attendee or exhibitor," said Pat Phillips, show director for the Electronic Entertainment Expo. "Rather, have the appropriate medical team handle the situation with the appropriate follow-up action to ensure health and safety of the individual as well as alleviate liability issues."
• Always inform the center. "The building contact and the first aid contact need to always be informed [about safety-related incidents], even if the situation is not severe," Hoff said.
• Get it in writing. "Convention center security, as well as contracted security, should have a written report of the incident for any possible liability issues," Phillips said. Hoff suggests planners follow up to see if they can get a copy of the incident report, but said that may be unlikely because of privacy laws.

° Contributing Editor Nancy Mann Jackson is a freelance writer in Birmingham, Ala. Convene's Meeting Budget series is sponsored by The Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Visit its Web site at www.mtccc.com.