Cape Town Cycle Tour – World Class Expertise

Posted on 15 February 2022

Mediclinic has safely supported the Cape Town Cycle Tour for more than 20 years. Our expertise and experience in such mass participation events allows us to focus on ensuring the safest possible race for all participants, making the right skills available at the right place along the route.

Medical Points along the Route

Participants will also be accustomed to seeing Mediclinic represented along the route with banners indication where the vital “medical points” are along the route. With 14 medical stations on the route, riders can rest assured that medical expertise is available within easy reach with other emergency services moving between these points! These Medical Stations are supported by the various Mediclinic Emergency Centres from around the peninsula – with hospital teams combining the experience of doctors and nurses to provide a broad range of care.

Our team of experienced medical staff remain in contact with all emergency services at all points along the route, to respond in the most appropriate manner.

Race Hospital Excellence

For many years’ the race hospital has been overseen by the experienced team from Mediclinic Milnerton Emergency Centre, led by Dr Cobus Wiese and PN Annalise Harley Lessing. Riders can locate the tent via the banners leading to the facility based in the stadium, or they will be transported from the finish line via golf-carts if they require assistance.

Any participant presenting for care at the race hospital is immediately triaged, to understand the condition and needs. This is performed by a Professional Nurse who will then make a decision on the urgency and scale of care.

Our team of wound care nurses provide rapid cleaning and dressing of all superficial wounds. For more serious injuries, our team of doctors and nurses will stabilise the patient and transfer the patient to the most appropriate facility for further care.

This race hospital includes a 22 bed capacity with a fully-fledged 3 bed ICU, with a qualified ICU team to support any patient experiencing a medical emergency.

Being appointed to such a team requires experience at other smaller events, where the necessary event skills can be acquired to support their clinical training. Mediclinic Milnerton has been responsible for staffing this team for many years.

Our team consists of 8 doctors and 16 nurses ready to assist you in case of an emergency. We have a mix of Emergency physicians, sports doctors and emergency room doctors as well a nursing team with years of emergency experience,” explains Dr Wiese.

Finish Line Expertise

As participants cross over the finish line after the Cape Town Cycle Tour, experienced medics and nurses are onsite to assist any participants who may collapse or experience a medical emergency. As experience has shown, a doctor and nurse team are stationed at the medals tent, which is a common point for rider collapses. With a tailored golf-cart, medics can transport the patient to the fully equipped race hospital. Teams are equipped with radios, to ensure all role players are aware and prepared for any patients being transported to race hospital. A dispatcher is positioned in the hospital to ensure communication flows freely, and that ambulances can be called when required.

ER24 Delivering Care on the Route

ER24 are well known for providing quality emergency care. Together with key private and public medical services providers, they provide access to emergency medical support along the route, with direct contact with the VOC (Venue Operations Centre) to understand where their support is required.

Participants will either be transported directly to hospital if their condition requires, or taken to the end tent race hospital for further treatment.

In addition, for the first time, ER24 will be responsible for dispatching any emergency services along the route, with the assistance of their Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) programme. This programme allows the VOC to view the route in real time with regards to available medical resources. When an incident happens or a call is received, it allows them to dispatch the closest available unit to the scene reducing the delay from incident to initial treatment.  It further assists in the coordination of other essential services to the scene such as fire, police or traffic. This results in shorter scene times and clears the route for the other cyclist approaching the area improving overall safety of all the participants.

Enjoy the Ride

Dr Darren Green, Race Doctor for the Cape Town Cycle Tour, encourages all participants to take full advantage of this opportunity and reap the benefits of physical activity as well as the perks of getting outdoors and experiencing the social well-being that accompanies mass participation events. He urges all to take the necessary precautions to ensure an enjoyable race. “Ensure the correct fuel sources to get the job done, don’t surprise your gut on race day. Consider the conditions and hydrate sufficiently according to your fluid losses and weather conditions on the day and do not underestimate the role of protection from the sun in terms of sunscreen and clothing. Listen to your body and rest when needed and make sure that you seek out help timeously if you experience any issues along the route. We are here for you – see you on 13 March!”