After war broke out in the Gaza Strip in 2023, Laura Swoboda watched from the other side of the globe as humanitarian conditions deteriorated. As a nurse practitioner, Swoboda was tapped into a global network of medical professionals, many of whom shared urgent calls for volunteers to travel to the conflict zone and provide medical care to Gazans in need. Swoboda, who uses they/them pronouns, is no stranger to going abroad on medical missions.