Influence of hosting the world’s most popular football competition on Response and Transport Time of Ground Emergency Ambulances in Qatar

Background

Qatar was anticipating approximately 1.2 million visitors during the FIFA World Cup 2022TM, significantly increasing the population, road traffic1 , and the number of emergency calls received,2 which could potentially affect the response and transportation times of emergency ambulances. This study investigates how the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022TM affected the response and transportation times of ground emergency ambulances around the country during November and December 2022 in comparison to previous years. This information could prove valuable to agencies responsible for planning and providing medical coverage for major tournaments worldwide.

Methods

Qatar’s Hamad Medical Corporation Ambulance Service (HMCAS) 999 data relating to response and transportation times for the months of November and December 2019 to 2022 was compared with respect to the population size.

Results

Findings are reported in Table 1. As expected, Qatar’s highest population during the periods analysed was during the World Cup. Response and transport times were shortest during that period despite an increase in the population size. Both times were higher that could be anticipated based on the previous year population size and call volume as shown in Figure 1.

Conclusion

Large-scale events present challenges for emergency medical services. However, HMCAS managed to maintain high performance levels in response and patient transport times. Contrary to expectations, response and transport times were at their shortest during the tournament compared to prior years despite the increased population. This can probably be explained by the measures put in place by the Police Traffic Department to minimise the number of vehicles on the roads, promoting the use of public transport which was free to match ticket holders, closure of many roads around Doha and stadiums, and an increase of the size of the ambulance fleet and workforce enabling more ambulances to respond to emergency calls.