Two Little Girls

Ian Cross is a doctor from the UK who is currently working at the MSF project in Kutupalong, Bangladesh. The project serves Rohingya refugees who have fled violence in neighbouring Myanmar. Here he tells the stories of two little girls who came for treatment at the clinic…

She didn’t see the soldier who fired the shot. Her father was running from the village carrying her in his arms. Her arms were around his neck. The bullet smashed through her right forearm and entered her father’s head, killing him instantly.

She didn’t talk much about what happened next. She crossed the border in to Bangladesh with her mother and little brother. Her arm was too badly damaged for us to treat in our facility at Kutupalong, so we referred her to the Memorial Christian Hospital, a couple of hours away to the north. The surgeons began by fixing the forearm bones. I reviewed her when she returned to the clinic with her arm in a cast. She couldn’t stretch out her fingers because the extensor tendons in her forearm had been destroyed by the bullet. 

After a month or so, she was ready for further surgery to reconstruct the tendons. She came to the clinic this morning, proud to show me the result. She could waggle her fingers. She was delighted. Her mother was so grateful for the treatment she received that she asked us to tell the world what had happened to her daughter. How can you be shot through the eye and remain alive? This little girl didn’t see who shot her either.

The bullet entered her skull obliquely, in front of her right ear. The bullet traversed her eyeball and exited through the side of her nose. The eye was completely destroyed of course. The surgeons repaired a hole an inch across between her eye socket and the brain. The sight in her left eye is normal. Although she was unfortunate to have been shot, she was incredibly lucky to survive. 

These two little girls managed to reach Bangladesh and received excellent care. But how many more died before they were able to leave Myanmar?

Read more from Ian: http://blogs.msf.org/en/staff/authors/ian-cross

 They come from Sudan, Somalia and Ethiopia. They are young adults and unaccompanied minors, pregnant women and entire families. They gather here in Ventimiglia, Italy, a small town on the Mediterranean coast, major transit point for refugees, and final frontier of the dangerous journey to Europe.

As many migrate north to nations like France and Germany, they pass through Ventimiglia, but recent increased policing along the borders here has prevented people from crossing successfully. As a result, the population of refugees and migrants is growing. With camps full, people look to the urban landscape for shelter, sleeping under bridges and overpasses. Some even sleep along the banks of the Roia river.

Citizens engaged: citizens on both sides of the border have stepped up to help the growing population. In Ventimiglia, Sant Antonio church has transformed into a temporary shelter and food kitchen; local bars offer refugees meal discounts and free electricity to charge their phones, since makeshift shelters lack power. MSF began collaborating with these local efforts in fall of last year to provide care for migrants in transit, especially for expectant mothers and to address the effects of mental trauma. Often, the trauma from the migration route leaves individuals with feelings of depression, abandonment and anxiety.

While people wait for the next step in Ventimiglia, not every asylum claim is approved by the government. When these applications are denied, the options are limited, though a last effort remains: to walk the five miles from Ventimiglia into France, a journey along the highway known as the “Pass of Death.” Since September, 10 have died on this route attempting to cross the border, and some, avoiding the highway altogether, travel along the equally dangerous railroad or mountain path instead. It is along this route that Roya Citoyenne, a local community group across the French border, has created a temporary shelter where, if only for a moment, refugees can safely rest as they seek their final destination.

When Zahra brought her children, Kholah and Saher, to our Abs hospital in Yemen, they were suffering from dehydration and malnutrition. 

Life in her village is hard, Zahra explains, with many supplies lacking: “It’s even hard to get them the milk they need. I spend many days looking for milk, worried and anxious.” 

The ongoing civil war in Yemen has left the health system in shambles, and now many in rural areas are without access to medical care. With services disrupted, in recent months the country now faces a severe cholera outbreak that is affecting thousands. While successful treatment does exist—serious cases can improve within four days with rehydration therapy—without a reliable health infrastructure, many are in danger of falling ill beyond the reach of clean water and proper care.