Medical festival staffing under spotlight in coroner’s findings

These are among 28 recommendations raised at the inquest into MDMA-related festival deaths, from deputy coroner Harriet Grahame
Australian Associated Press
Deputy Coroner Harriet Grahame. Photo: AAP

Calls to allow pill testing, and for medical staff providers to review protocols in the case of festival fatalities, are among 28 recommendations made by a NSW coroner.

The state’s deputy coroner Harriet Grahame recommended sniffer dogs be banned from festivals and that guidelines be updated and reviewed every year.

Organisations, such as EMS Event Medical, which provided medical staff at festivals, should also review its protocols in the case of fatalities, she said.

Ms Grahame has been examining the deaths of six young people who died as a result of MDMA toxicity or complications of MDMA use at music festivals between December 2017 and January 2019.