Health & Safety

students rally after campus shooting at UNC Chapel Hill

Audit recommended University of North Carolina mandate training that could mitigate shootings

7:44pm October 09, 2023

A 2020 internal audit at the University of North Carolina’s flagship campus — the location of two gun-related lockdowns this academic year — recommended the school consider requiring faculty and staff be trained in how to respond to an active shooter.

The situation in Gaza from a doctor on the ground

5:12pm October 09, 2023

Dr. Medhat Abbas, Gaza's Health Ministry director general, said his hospital was already short on medical supplies and medications. Now, with military strikes that have killed hundreds, it's worse.

Queue Listen Now

Republican group pushes for exceptions to Missouri's abortion ban

4:26pm October 09, 2023

by Jason Rosenbaum

Missouri is turning to voters after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned 'Roe v. Wade.' Abortion rights advocates are trying to repeal the ban in 2024 — and that includes a new Republican-led nonprofit.

North Carolina receives nearly $15 million to boost mental health services for children and families

11:08am October 09, 2023

by Neal Charnoff

North Carolina is receiving $14.8 million to support mental health initiatives for children and families.

Students help instructional coach Regina Green caramelize onions for a dish featuring fresh greens from the school garden at Watkins Elementary.

Can cooking and gardening at school inspire better nutrition? Ask these kids

5:06am October 09, 2023

by Allison Aubrey

With diet-related disease on the rise in the U.S., some schools are adding nutrition to the curriculum. Teaching kids to grow and cook fresh produce can influence life-long eating habits.

Mikki Smith lets out a cry as she adjusts to the frigid water. It was her first time with the Puget Sound Plungers in Seattle, Washington.

Ready to cold plunge? We dive into the science to see if it's worth it

10:50pm October 08, 2023

by Will Stone

When it comes to the health benefits of cold water dips, the hype is ahead of the science. NPR talked to researchers about what's true, what's not, and the latest on how to get the most out of it.

Psychiatrist Robert Jay Lifton has studied Auschwitz survivors, Vietnam war veterans, survivor of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and people who'd been subjected to repression by the Chinese government. He reflects on what he's learned in his new book, Surviving Our Catastrophes: Resilience and Renewal from Hiroshima to the Covid-19 Pandemic.

Health & Safety

What survivors of trauma have taught this eminent psychiatrist about hope

8:46pm October 08, 2023

by Joanne Silberner

In his new book, 97-year-old Robert Jay Lifton shares the "survivor wisdom" he's learned from those who've lived through terrible events — the Holocaust, Hiroshima, POW camps.

Boran Bumovich Hignio, a 7-year-old surfer, gets help with his wetsuit from Diego Villarán, who founded the local surf school, and other staffers.

For these Peruvian kids, surfing isn't just water play

4:51pm October 07, 2023

by Peter Yeung

A school in Peru is part of a wave of community-based projects around the world that uses a perhaps surprising method to help kids: surf therapy. And it's not just about physical well-being.

Kaiser Permanente strike ends without resolution, but workers are prepared to strike again

7:58am October 07, 2023

by Jackie Fortier

The 75,000 health care workers from Kaiser Permanente could only strike for three days under federal rules. They'll go back to work Saturday as union talks with the giant health care company continue.

Jacob Murungi collects water near his home in central Kenya — harvesting it from fog that forms overnight and clings to trees.

Harvesting water from fog and air in Kenya with jerrycans and newfangled machines

4:22pm October 06, 2023

Fog harvesting has long been a method of collecting water around the world. As climate change makes water harder and harder to find, technology is making it easier to pull water from the air.