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In pictures: basic health care in camps in Greece

IFRC
2 min readNov 8, 2016

In camps for migrants in Greece, Red Cross teams operate health centres where they see patients and treat common illnesses, accidents and health needs on site. Leena Railimo-Saares from the Finnish Red Cross is head nurse at Nea Kavala migrant camp. “People come to the clinic for the same reasons you or I might go in our home town — colds, pain, concerns about your kids,” she says. “When there are more serious health conditions, patients are referred to hospitals.” (Photo: Socrates Baltagiannis/IFRC)
Red Cross’ health centres are staffed with a diverse team of experienced health care professionals from around the world, including nurses, midwives, paediatricians, psychiatrists, psychologists, dentists and general practitioners. Nobuhiro Komiya is a doctor from Japan and has been treating patients at Nea Kavala camp for almost 2 months. At home, he works as an infectious disease specialist at a Japanese Red Cross hospital (Photo: Socrates Baltagiannis/IFRC).
Many of the migrants here fled traumatic situations and survived harrowing journeys to Greece. Maria Prokopiou, a psychosocial support officer with Hellenic Red Cross, runs a child friendly space at Diavata migrant camp. “We provide the children with a space to play and be creative, to take their minds off living in the camp, and all the memories of war and violence that they carry with them,” she says. “We do a lot of drawing and painting, making jewellery, and singing. Although we don’t do direct counselling, these other activities no doubt help those that suffer trauma.” The Red Cross health centres and psychosocial assistance activities operate with financial support from the EU’s Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department (Photo: Socrates Baltagiannis/IFRC).
Belen Moreno is a paediatrician with the Spanish Red Cross and works at Ritsona migrant camp where the Red Cross has been providing basic health care for refugees and other migrants since March 2016. “Malnutrition is a real concern for children sheltering here,” she says. “There are limited cooking facilities and parents are dependent on meals provided by the camp authorities. Humanitarian organizations often provide fruit for kids and breast feeding mothers. Now that the Red Cross is providing cash assistance, we’re hoping parents will be able to buy additional fruit and veggies for their children” (Photo: Socrates Baltagiannis/IFRC).
Health care is one of the key services provided by the Red Cross in camps in Greece. As children and women make up over 60% of the migrant population, paediatricians and midwifes are a key feature of the clinics. The teams also focus on health promotion and disease prevention, including vaccination campaigns, to reduce the probability of disease outbreaks (Photo: Socrates Baltagiannis/IFRC).
Our teams working in Greece witness daily how the uncertain situation and dire conditions impact the physical and mental health of migrants. People are exhausted and desperate, causing frustrations to mount. Many have faced violence and trauma in their past. Birthe Solevad is a psychosocial worker from the Danish Red Cross and she facilitates women’s and men’s discussion groups in northern Greece. She says that the groups provide migrants with a safe space to share their worries and frustrations (Photo: Socrates Baltagiannis/IFRC).
Naweam Naser is a Syrian refugee who and volunteer translator assisting patients who come to Red Cross’ health clinic in Nea Kavala. Naser has lived at Nea Kavala for eight months, after leaving Damascus where she was a lawyer, and travelling via Turkey to Greece by herself. Naser says, “my role at the clinic is really important, enabling patients and doctors to communicate with each other, so that people get the care that they need” (Photo: Socrates Baltagiannis/IFRC).

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Refugees
Greece
Migration
Migrants

IFRC
IFRC

Written by IFRC

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International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

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