Since December 2023, Med’EqualiTeam has been working in the Thessaloniki region to meet the growing primary health care needs of asylum seekers, refugees and other vulnerable groups. With the suspension of several programmes, the closure of NGOs and the geographical isolation of new camps, displaced populations face many barriers to accessing health care.
Greece Context
From the summer of 2015, large numbers of people seeking asylum arrived in the European Union, fleeing war or misery in their countries of origin. Greece is one of the entry points, and this situation has turned Thessaloniki into a key area on the route, due to its proximity to Türkiye and the Balkans.
Until December 2022 many people in Thessaloniki were housed under the ESTIA II (Emergency Support to Integration and Accommodation). After the closure of this program, approximately 10, 000 people were evicted from their homes, either forced into new controlled and remote camps or left without the assistance to find their own accommodation, increasing asylum seekers and refugees living in the streets in different cities.
In addition, the Greek islands like Samos and Lesvos continue to receive large inflows of asylum seekers, who are then regularly transferred to camps in northern Greece.
The Northern Greece Project:
Med’EqualiTeam operates in northern Greece to provide access to basic medical care for people on the move. Our actions focus mainly on:
- The establishment of free medical consultations
- Developing health education program
Medical mobile unit
People living in camps, whether documented or undocumented, are often unable to access adequate healthcare due to the isolation of the camps, the irregular presence of medical staff and barriers to access including the lack of provided translators and finances to travel into Thessaloniki for specialists.
In response to the camps’ geographic isolation, we operate a mobile clinic that moves to community centres near the camps to provide basic care to the displaced. We continue to develop our network to expand our coverage in hard-to-reach areas.
Job description for Nurse or Paramedic volunteers
Please note: this is a volunteer based position, with no compensation offered.
Your main role will be to support primary healthcare consultations and patient triaging in different settings each day. Your tasks will be managing acute health issues and a whole other range of healthcare needs; from vital signs, observations, and wound care to referrals management. As of today, chronic diseases are not part of our scope so we refer patients with e.g, diabetes and high blood pressure, but a knowledge of chronic disease management is helpful to adequately assess the patient.
Throughout your stay with us, we ask that you are flexible and adaptable, as we are constantly adapting our services to refugee needs. You will also be required to help with medical support tasks to keep the operation going, such as restocking the mobile units, pharmacy management, health promotion and other support tasks.
Required experience and skills
- Experience in or knowledge of primary health care (Nurse Practitioner welcomed to apply).
- Experience in wound dressing or experience in assessing patients on your own in order to adequately triage them.
- Capable of working independently, while knowing your professional limits and asking for help if needed.
- Capable of adapting to a low resource setting, knowing how to deal with the frustrations that come with work in this kind of setting.
- Fluency in English
- Available for at least 3 full working weeks, ideally more. Preference will be given to applications with longer stays.
- In possession of a visa to volunteer in Greece/ EU Schengen area – Med’EqualiTeam cannot assist applicants in their visa applications!
Desired experience and skills
- Previous experience with working with displaced people.
- A driving license and experience driving a manual car.
- Knowledge of locally relevant languages (Greek, Arabic, Farsi, French).
How to apply
Applications will be processed on a rolling basis. We accept applicants to join us on the ground from as early as May 1st 2025 onwards.
To be considered as a volunteer on our team, please fill in the Nurse / Paramedic application form on our website: