Assisting Migrants in Greece's Aegean Islands

From August 30 to September 4, a Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) team visited the Aegean Islands of Samos, Leros, and Simi to respond to reports of a recent influx of Syrian and Afghan migrants and asylum-seekers.

Newly arrived migrants face limited access to health care in Greece. Infrastructure and accommodation capacity is limited and sanitation standards are inadequate in all of the facilities visited by the MSF team, and access to basic resources such as drinking water—and in some cases food—is limited. Personal hygiene items are unavailable, and currently used transit sites do not have separate facilities for men, women, and families.

All vulnerable people (children, pregnant women, the elderly, and people with chronic diseases) should have access to an initial medical assessment and follow-up care when needed.

The MSF team provided medical services and distributed personal hygiene items like toothpaste, toothbrushes, and soap to a total of 246 people, and provided water and food items for young children where needed.

MSF has provided medical and humanitarian assistance to migrants and asylum seekers in Greece Since 2008.