Events are an integral component of entertainment and the economy. Whichever way you look at it, you will notice that the events industry has evolved significantly and is a major contributor to several businesses. Ever since the coronavirus pandemic hit the world, events have been put on hold, with organisers fearing potential repercussions and many afraid of attending such mass events.
Following an encouraging number of days with zero cases registered in Malta, events were being introduced following months of restrictions. Fast forward a few days, and you have new coronavirus spikes, a number of which include clusters of people who attended mass events.
Following these spikes and an increase in the number of active coronavirus cases, there is a lot of controversies, with several health figures and workers asking for a ban on mass events.
Considering the current situation, is there a way a balance can be reached? Can we have events that are safe? In this article, we will discuss how safe events, including weddings can take place.
Social distancing
Whilst this term has been used extensively in the past months, we still have numerous crowds of people congregating together. In order to ensure the required social distancing in such events, the organiser may consider engaging specialised personnel to monitor the developments during the
event and make sure that people do not congregate in crowds, which could increase the risk of transmission. Such personnel would be engaged to ensure that people do not gather in large crowds
next to food stations, bars, and dance areas.
Temperature screening
Although screening for fever is not a 100% guarantee that you are capturing those infected with the coronavirus, it is a good measure to capture someone who may have symptoms. It is therefore an additional layer of protection which should be applied on all event attendees.
Manage finger food items
If possible, finger food items should be replaced with individual dishes for each attendee. This will minimise the risk of other people being exposed to one’s food and hence infection. When finger food items cannot be replaced, as may be the case in a wedding for example, a good distance is to be kept between the food items, so as to ensure minimal exposure as people are picking their items.
Signage
Adopting signage is a good strategy to constantly remind attendees to maintain social distancing and good hand hygiene. These reminders are useful especially as people would start to enjoy themselves with a few drinks here and there, and let their guard down.
So what do you think about events? Should they be allowed to carry on with such restrictions? Let us know in the comments section below.
