‘The NHS would collapse within hours’: BME staff say Britain fails to appreciate their roles

“I am fed up of being called names. I know I am Black. I was born Black. And I love being Black. So tell me something I don’t know

Foreign medics shunning NHS because of anti-migrant rhetoric, says top doctor

Foreign doctors and nurses are increasingly shunning the NHS because anti-migrant rhetoric and rising racism have created “a hostile environment”, the leader of Britain’s medics has warned.The health service is being put at risk because overseas health professionals increasingly see the UK as an “unwelcoming, racist” country, in part because of the government’s tough approach to immigration, Jeanette Dickson said.Record numbers of foreign-born doctors are quitting the NHS and the post-Brexit surge in those coming to work in it has stalled. At the same time, the number of nurses and midwives joining the NHS has fallen sharply over the past year.Dickson is the chair of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, which represents the professional interests of the UK and Ireland’s 220,000 doctors, including GPs, surgeons, anaesthetists and A&E specialists

Abuse survivors need safe housing above all | Letters

The government’s new violence against women and girls strategy sets out welcome ambitions to strengthen protection and tackle misogyny, but the real test will be in delivery (UK government strategy to protect women and girls from violence ‘seriously underfunded’, 18 December). Housing remains one of the most critical yet underfunded parts of the national response to abuse. Without a secure home, survivors cannot rebuild their lives, access work or engage with support services.Every week, too many women and families seeking help are turned away because there simply isn’t enough safe, suitable housing available. A survivor can’t start again if they have nowhere to go

Blood test could predict who is most at risk from common inherited heart condition

Scientists are developing a simple blood test to predict who is most at risk from the world’s most common inherited heart condition.Millions of people worldwide have hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), a disease of the heart muscle where the wall of the heart becomes thickened. It is caused by a change in one or more genes and mostly passed on through families.Some feel fine most of the time and have few or no symptoms. But others can suffer complications, such as heart failure and abnormal heart rhythms, which can lead to a cardiac arrest

Inside the US’s psychedelic church boom, where taking drugs is legal

The Church of Gaia in Spokane, Washington, has all the makings of a traditional place of worship: regular gatherings, communal songs and member donations – except they also serve ayahuasca, a psychedelic substance that can induce nausea and, at times, projectile vomiting.“This is a purely spiritual practice,” said Connor Mize, the ceremonial leader of the Church of Gaia. “It’s not a thing you do just for fun.”Psychedelics are classified as schedule 1 substances and banned throughout most of the US. But a small number of churches have won the right to use them as sacraments: since the 2000s, four organizations have secured legal protections for psychedelic use after protracted battles with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)

Key figures in creation of Milton Keynes criticise England’s new towns plan

Senior planners involved in building the country’s postwar new towns have raised concerns about the government’s new towns programme, criticising a lack of ambition and insufficient commitment to social housing.Lee Shostak, former director of planning at Milton Keynes Development Corporation (MKDC) in the 1970s and later chair of the Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA), said the current plan for the new towns may not help people who need homes the most.He said that while Milton Keynes was designed specifically to ease the housing burden in London with a large stock of council housing, there was a real risk these new towns would do little to alleviate council house waiting lists in big cities.“There’s talk about 40% of the homes as affordable housing, most of which will not be social housing and there’s no indication whatsoever those homes will be available for people moving from London or other urban areas,” said Shostak.“So the very basic, simple premise that kickstarted the original new towns programme isn’t being followed through today