For Frontline Workers, No Vaccine for Mental Health [Video]

A collective sigh of relief, a national exhale is almost palpable across the United States.

Vaccination rates are rising. Hope is growing that a fourth wave of COVID-19 infections can be kept at bay, along with the spread of variants.

For many, there’s a sense that the “new normal,” a stability not felt for more than a year, is on the horizon.

And yet, a cloud lingers.

“The vaccine is not going to fix mental health,” said Amy Beck, a licensed psychologist at Children’s Mercy Kansas City and an associate professor of pediatrics with the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine.

For patients with preexisting cases of depression and anxiety, along with those who developed such diagnosable conditions during the pandemic, …