eligibility for psychological services, stating: “I know there’s a psychologist here, I didn’t know if everyone could go there. There are people who take medications, because their heads don’t work well, I thought it was them who had the right to go there”. Detained asylum seekers are therefore not always fully aware of their rights and entitlements to healthcare services, and of how to access these services if required. b. Deterrence and long waiting times Several participants reported long waiting times to see the PRDC’s doctors or psychologist. Florence told us: “When you go there to complain that you need to see a doctor, it takes them time to talk to a doctor”. Similarly, Kamal reported: “I asked for psychologist here and they told me ‘yeah we will let you meet him’, but they never called my name. That was before I received my second rejection”. Amir similarly complained that he had been trying to see the PRDC’s psychologist for a month and had not managed to secure an appointment. Taher further told us that as the PRDC’s doctors do not work on weekends, “if you were sick on Saturday and Sunday, the doctor is off, so there is no medical service during these two days”. At times, these long waiting times were perceived as tactics of deterrence, implemented by the police, or healthcare professionals themselves. Multiple participants also reported deterrence and dismissiveness by police with regards to their access to medical and psychological services. Joud described his challenges when attempting to obtain medical attention for one of his fellow detainees, stating: “He fainted and we tried to call the police but they took a really long time to come and check on him. And they came and they didn’t really care about him”. Similarly, Afran stated: “… it’s really hard even if you went to the police to register your name to meet the doctor, they will delay you for a couple of days…you have to register yourself every day to make sure they give you an appointment, sometimes they agree to send you to the doctor and psychologist and sometimes they don’t”. Meanwhile, Faiza described an incident where she was prevented from accessing adequate medical care. She explained that when she had a fever, police took her to be isolated in a cold and dirty room for two days in case she had COVID-19. She reported that she had no mattress, was provided with a dirty blanket, and that there were mice on the floor of the room. She was only permitted to see the doctor after two days, when another detained person saw her through the container window and persuaded police to allow her access to medical care. Zain’s experiences of continuous deterrence by police in fact put him off from seeking medical assistance. When describing one incident of illness, he stated: “I felt the pain during the night but I knew if I went to the police they wouldn’t do anything about it. I waited till the morning and went to the police so they could check me. Once he saw that I have a really high fever and my situation was getting worse he looked at the surgery that I had, he said they should send me to hospital”. Multiple participants also expressed their fear of the police and feelings of resignation as they felt there was nothing the police would do for them. Many of these issues have come to light after the death of Macky Diabate, the asylum seeker who died from appendicitis in March 2021. Zain, who lived in the same section as Diabate, attempted to explain the institutional failures that contributed to Diabate’s passing: “They tried to talk with the police to take him to the hospital but they didn’t really do it and the police officer said there is no doctor right now and we can’t offer anything right now for him”. Similarly, Ismail told us: “…he was trying to talk with the police and they didn’t even respond to him. So what am I supposed to ask them, and what would they answer to me. The African guy tried to seek help from them and they didn’t do anything, so there’s no point of asking them”. Diabate’s death has not only caused significant distress and panic among the detained population in Kos but has also exacerbated their distrust in the Greek authorities and made people even more reluctant to seek medical care. c. Dismissiveness by healthcare professionals 54 DETENTION OF MIGRANTS ON THE ISLAND OF KOS