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On 8 September 2020, a fire broke out on Greece’s island of Lesbos, in Moria camp, which hosted some 13,000 refugees and migrants, a camp that is meant to have capacity for fewer than 3,000. Thousands of refugees and migrants have fled the flames and are now displaced on the road to Mytilini. Reports indicate that no facilities have survived the fire. The fire broke out at a time of COVID-19 circulation. Following the first COVID-19 case, identified 2 September, other had been confirmed for a total of 35. In addition, over 80 cases outside the camp have been confirmed. As of 08 September, 7 people have died from COVID-19.  It is critical to continue both the provision of adequate basic health services to the residents, as well as preventing further spread of COVID-19 among camp residents and treating those who are affected.

Due to this, the Ministry of Health of Greece is concerned about the capacity to respond to the crisis and to manage the severe and critical cases of COVID-19 among residents of the Moria camp and has issued a request for assistance for specialized Emergency Medical Teams and Rapid Response Mobile Laboratories. The Ministry is seeking at Emergency Medical Teams to deploy as a specialized care team, comprising:

• Team Lead/Liaison Officer
• Clinical/case management (including Intensive Care expertise) - Nurse/Physicians (6)
• IPC and WASH experts (4)
• Logistics (2)

Teams are requested from EMT organizations who have completed or are in process of completing the WHO EMT classification. This response requires EMT specialist teams capable of integrating within existing health structures and working in support of the national health system, or capable of establishing/managing stand-alone isolation facilities.

• The requested initial duration of the mission is 2 weeks, but the EMT Secretariat welcomes offers from teams that can offer longer term support or are interested in setting up a rotation with another team/teams. Additional information regarding the details of deployment will be provided to EMTs that submit their expressions of interest.
• All teams interested in deploying that meet the criteria should email their offers of assistance and registration forms to the EMT Secretariat.

All teams interested in deploying that meet the criteria should email their offers of assistance and registration forms (click here for form) to the EMT Secretariat (emteams@who.int).

Deployment of Emergency Medical Teams is subject to approval by the Ministry of Health of Greece. Once in the field, the coordination of EMT activities is led by the Ministry of Health and supported by WHO. Teams are expected to be able to comply with the minimum standards of being a deployable EMT. We thank you in advance for your assistance.

Emergency Medical Teams Secretariat