COM Outlook Spring 2020

30 | DR. KIRAN C. PATEL COLLEGE OF OSTEOPATHIC MEDICINE While in between jobs in September 2015, I had an opportunity to provide basic life support on the Greek island of Lesvos for refugees fleeing violence in Syria and Afghanistan. War in those countries had spurred an exodus of people heading west. By the time they reached the west coast of Turkey, they had already been through a life-threatening, or at least undignified, journey. Their final obstacle before stepping foot on Greek, and thus European Union (EU), soil was crossing the 10 miles of Aegean Sea between Turkey and Lesvos. Turkish smugglers charged top dollar for a seat in each perilously overcrowded, five-horsepower dinghy. The rough seas often caused rafts to take in water—frightening, if not overturning, the passengers. Coast guard and volunteer surveillance was inadequate for the number of crossings. Occasionally, an entire group— babies, elderly people, and everyone in between—would drown. Most groups did arrive, with 50 nauseous or hypothermic voyagers stumbling out of their rafts onto Lesvos beaches. Grown men hugged me, crying in relief; women collapsed in prayer to Allah; and teens used pocket- knives to puncture their rafts, gesturing across at Turkey in defiance. Perilous Passage Easy crossings produced happy passengers, some of whom took selfies or lit cigarettes moments after reaching dry land. Scary crossings produced acutely ill or injured passengers. There were gory lacerations to clean and dress and blue-lipped children to warm. I was considerably over my head as a newly certified emergency medical technician (EMT). One girl dry heaved to the point of rupturing her facial blood vessels and fainting. I checked her pulse and wrapped her in rescue blankets as frantic family members screamed in Arabic around me. Fortunately, she soon regained consciousness, and something compelled me to force-feed her pieces of STUDENT PERSPECTIVES BY ZACHARY BURNS WORKING WITH WAR AND CLIMATE REFUGEES IN GREECE MASS MIGRA CRISIS SS MIGRATION SIS MASS MIGRATION CRISIS STUDENT Perspectives (continued on page 32)