Rodeo Sports Medicine Team Security Risk Assessment Checklist

How to assess rodeo venue hazards and access

Walk the venue before the event with representatives from sports medicine, event operations, security, and facilities. Assess the competition arena, chutes, warm-up areas, livestock holding areas, medical station, spectator areas, parking, and routes between them. A rodeo sports medicine team security risk assessment should identify hazards, who will address them, and how staff will report a change during the event.

• ☐ Check arena barriers, gates, chute areas, footing, lighting, and any temporary structures for hazards or obstructions.
• ☐ Identify places where spectators, competitors, livestock, and work vehicles could cross paths; confirm how access to restricted areas is controlled.
• ☐ Walk primary and alternate routes to the medical area and exits. Check for locked gates, crowd bottlenecks, uneven ground, and obstacles that could delay responders.
• ☐ Confirm who can unlock gates and direct emergency responders, including when normal event operations are paused or the venue is crowded.
• ☐ Account for event-specific conditions such as weather, dust, noise, poor visibility, temporary power, and changes in arena layout.

Record each hazard, its controls, and the person responsible for follow-up. Keep the venue assessment specific to the site and event rather than relying on a generic checklist. The National Athletic Trainers’ Association guidance on emergency action plan development recommends venue-focused planning that includes risk analysis and evaluation of emergency vehicle access.

What to include in the emergency action plan

The emergency action plan (EAP) should tell staff how to recognize an emergency, activate the response, provide care within their training, and summon outside help. Make the plan easy to find and use during a noisy, fast-moving event.

• ☐ List the venue’s street address, the best entrance for responders, and clear directions from the entrance to the arena or treatment location.
• ☐ State how to report an emergency, whom to call, and what backup communication method to use if a phone or radio fails.
• ☐ Define the medical response role assignment: who activates the EAP, calls emergency services, meets responders, provides care, clears the scene, and documents the response.
• ☐ Include evacuation or shelter procedures, accessible routes, spectator communication, and a method for accounting for event staff after evacuation.
• ☐ Describe how care and event operations are coordinated if a medical provider leaves with a patient.

Clarify that the EAP is an event-planning tool, not a substitute for local procedures or legal requirements. OSHA’s 29 CFR 1910.38 sets minimum emergency action plan elements for workplaces when an applicable OSHA standard requires one; it does not make every sports-event recommendation a universal federal requirement.

How to coordinate the sports medicine team with emergency services

Coordinate emergency medical services (EMS) before the rodeo, not for the first time during an incident. Share the EAP, venue map, event schedule, likely access constraints, and contact details with local EMS and other relevant responders. The NATA’s EAP development guidance recommends identifying stakeholders, defining their roles, and coordinating access with EMS.

• ☐ Hold a pre-event briefing with the medical team, event operations, security, and available EMS representatives.
• ☐ Identify the primary person to call 911 and a backup. Make clear that anyone who discovers an immediately life-threatening emergency should not delay the call while searching for the designated person.
• ☐ Assign a specific person to meet the ambulance, open the correct gate, and guide responders to the patient.
• ☐ Agree on how to communicate a pause in competition and how to keep bystanders and livestock clear of the response area.
• ☐ Confirm how EMS will be contacted if radio coverage or cellular reception is unreliable.

Which emergency equipment and transport routes to verify

Check that equipment is present, accessible, in working order, and appropriate for the training of the people expected to use it. The American Heart Association’s sports cardiac emergency response checklist recommends identifying AED locations, maintaining the devices, training staff, and practicing the response.

• ☐ Verify the automated external defibrillator location, access during competition, readiness indicator, and any event procedure for bringing it to the patient.
• ☐ Check radios or phones, first-aid supplies, and other equipment included in the EAP; confirm that designated users know how to operate equipment assigned to them.
• ☐ Mark emergency vehicle access points on the venue map and keep gates, roads, and ambulance staging areas clear.
• ☐ Walk and confirm primary and alternate routes from the arena to the ambulance and from the venue entrance to the patient area.
• ☐ Make sure signs, maps, and event staff can direct responders correctly, including when crowds or temporary barriers change the usual route.

Document equipment checks and promptly report missing, damaged, or inaccessible items to the responsible event lead. NATA guidance also recommends regular equipment checks and rehearsals of the emergency response.

How to account for rodeo-specific participant risks

Plan for risks associated with the events on the program, not only for general sports injuries. Rodeo injury research describes injuries related to falls and contact with livestock, including head injuries and injuries to other parts of the body. A systematic review of rodeo injuries discusses these injury patterns and the importance of prevention and appropriate care.

• ☐ Identify event areas where a competitor may be injured during a ride, dismount, or timed event, and ensure the team knows how to summon help without entering an unsafe arena or livestock area.
• ☐ Include a process for assessing and referring suspected head, neck, spine, or other serious injuries, following the medical director’s protocols.
• ☐ Perform rodeo protective gear inspection according to the event’s governing rules and applicable manufacturer guidance. Record concerns and refer equipment questions to the official responsible for enforcing those rules.
• ☐ Make clear that medical staff—not competitive pressure—guide clinical decisions about assessment, removal from participation, and referral.
• ☐ Consider the needs of minors, including how a responsible adult or guardian will be contacted and how the team will handle an emergency when a guardian is not present.

An equipment check does not guarantee that an injury will be prevented. It is one part of a broader plan that includes safe access, timely assessment, and a prepared medical response.

What staff training and documentation to maintain

Train each person on the actions they may be expected to perform, and make the EAP available to the people who need it. Training should match assigned responsibilities; staff should not be asked to perform clinical tasks beyond their qualifications and training.

• ☐ Review emergency signals, communication methods, evacuation responsibilities, and who to contact with each staff member assigned a response role.
• ☐ Confirm that people assigned to medical duties have the appropriate training for their role and know where event equipment is located.
• ☐ Keep emergency response documentation, including the current EAP, equipment checks, staff training records, drill notes, and a record of revisions.
• ☐ After an incident, document relevant response actions, communications, and follow-up in accordance with the organization’s procedures and applicable privacy requirements.
• ☐ Protect medical records and restrict access to people who need the information to carry out their responsibilities.

OSHA’s emergency action plan standard includes employee training and review requirements in circumstances where the standard applies. Separately, NATA recommends documenting EAP training, rehearsals, equipment maintenance, and plan updates as part of effective sports-event preparation.

When to review and rehearse the security risk assessment

Review the assessment and EAP before each event so the team can account for that day’s layout, staffing, access conditions, and schedule. Revisit them when venue arrangements, hazards, equipment locations, or assigned roles change. Review them after a serious incident or drill to identify gaps and revise the plan where needed.

• ☐ Conduct a pre-event briefing and confirm that key staff know their roles, contact methods, and routes.
• ☐ Rehearse the EAP regularly, including how to summon EMS, open gates, reach the patient, and manage the event area while care is underway.
• ☐ Record the date, participants, scenario, findings, and corrective actions for each review or rehearsal.
• ☐ Use an annual review as a planning benchmark, while also reviewing sooner when circumstances or responsibilities change.

The NATA EAP development guidance supports regular review, rehearsal, and documentation; the appropriate schedule should also reflect event-specific risks and applicable organizational rules. In short, a strong assessment connects venue hazards, clear medical roles, working equipment, accessible transport routes, and practiced coordination with EMS.

FAQs

How often should a rodeo emergency action plan be reviewed?

Review it before each event and whenever the venue, staffing, access routes, equipment, or assigned responsibilities change. An annual review is a useful minimum planning benchmark, and the team should also review the plan after an incident or rehearsal to address lessons learned. OSHA’s review requirements apply in the circumstances covered by its standard; an annual review is not a universal federal requirement for every rodeo.

Who is responsible for calling emergency services during a rodeo?

The EAP should name a primary caller and a backup, and state how they will share the venue location and guide responders to the patient. Anyone who discovers an immediately life-threatening emergency should call 911 without delay if the designated caller is not immediately available, then alert the team so the response is coordinated.

What emergency equipment and access routes should the medical team verify?

Verify the AED and its location, communication devices, medical supplies, equipment readiness, and the training of assigned users. Confirm that emergency vehicle access points, gates, the ambulance staging area, and primary and alternate routes to the patient are marked and unobstructed.

How should the team respond when a competitor delays seeking medical care?

Stay calm, explain the concern, and promptly offer an assessment by the qualified medical provider. If the competitor has a potentially serious injury or symptoms that warrant urgent evaluation, activate the EAP and contact EMS according to local protocols. If the person refuses care, follow the medical director’s and EMS system’s procedures for assessing and documenting an informed refusal; decision-making capacity, applicable law, and requirements for minors can vary. The National Model EMS Clinical Guidelines discuss capacity, informed refusal, medical oversight, and documentation.