Melody Redman: Don't drive away EU medics who keep our NHS afloat

Christina worked with me on my first day training in child health, when some of us had to cover the ‘shop floor’ whilst everyone else was being inducted.

Being further along in her training than I am, she worked extra hard so that she could help me too.

As doctors, we still get scared, we’re still human and have all the flaws that go along with that, but I know Christina always looks out for me, often giving me a hug at the end of a hard shift.

Her clinical skills are well honed, she is highly intelligent, and she is kind and thoughtful.

Like 6.6 per cent of doctors in the UK, Christina graduated from another country in the European Economic Area (EEA).

We joke about how she throws in the odd Yorkshire word here and there, 
but despite a different accent, you wouldn’t know any difference in our training.

We have discussed the uncertainty facing EU staff in the NHS, and I always want her to know how valued she is.

Sadly though, not all EU nationals working in the NHS feel appreciated following the EU referendum.

A new survey by the British Medical Association has found that more 
than one in four European doctors working in the UK are considering leaving the UK in light of the referendum result while a further quarter are undecided.

The survey also found that on a scale of one to 10, European doctors stated they feel substantially less appreciated by the UK Government in light of the EU referendum result. The average rating dropped from seven out of 10 before the referendum, to less than four after 
the June 23 referendum.

This is incredibly worrying, particularly at a time when in my specialty alone, around 15 per cent of trainee rota places are already left unfilled.

If those doctors who feel unappreciated by the Government vote with their feet and leave the UK, our National Health Service will not be able to cope.

Recruiting from overseas has been vital in dealing with staff shortages, and the NHS is dependent on overseas workers to provide a high-quality, reliable and safe service to patients.

When I first started working as a doctor, there were two nurses who particularly stood out, both of whom had graduated from Spain.

One night after a patient deteriorated suddenly and had a heart attack and cardiac arrest, one of them, knowing it had been a difficult situation, found me afterwards, put her hand on my shoulder and asked if I was alright. They were incredibly kind and caring for our patients, and they were invaluable dedicated members of the team.

From cleaners to canteen workers, administrative staff to porters, pharmacists to researchers, I have worked with many staff who have moved here from the EU and from outside the EU, and I value them deeply.

As a clinical academic trainee, I also know that we need to maintain close collaboration with our EU research colleagues, sharing research and ideas across borders, to improve healthcare.

Staff shortages are worsening across the NHS. Almost three quarters of NHS Trusts are concerned they don’t have the right staff numbers and skill mix to deliver high quality care, while one in three GP practices have unfilled vacancies.

To ensure long-term stability for the NHS, the Government must act now. Whatever your view on Brexit and immigration in general, if like me, you don’t want to lose any of the valued and highly-skilled EU doctors or NHS staff that currently work in the UK, please contact your local MP and urge them to call for Theresa May to grant permanent residence to all medical professionals 
and NHS staff from the EU currently working in the UK.

Our NHS is already under so much pressure and strain that we cannot afford for these hard-working staff to think – 
for one moment –that they are not valued, 
or have them doubting their future here. It takes five years for a student to progress through medical school, and many more years of training as a junior doctor.

At a time when the NHS is at breaking point, applications to medical school are falling, and fewer junior doctors than ever before are continuing straight into specialty training from their foundation training, we cannot afford to lose any of our doctors, regardless of where they are from.

Whilst there is division and a whole range of views on the ongoing uncertainties and implications around Brexit, I hope that we are united by our love for the NHS. I stand with my European colleagues, knowing that the issue is not that they need us, but that we need, and should value, them.

Melody Redman is a junior doctor in Yorkshire. Names have been changed to protect 
the identity of colleagues.