News

​The last few years has taken a toll on all of us. We experienced feelings of loneliness, isolation, depression, anxiety, and grief from lives lost. Unfortunately for too many, these emotions lead to thoughts of suicide. To help individuals receive help faster the National Suicide Lifeline launched a new 3-digit crisis line number.

​We've all been weathering the impact of a two-year pandemic that continues to affect our lives and requires constant adaptations. Childcare, eldercare, social connections, travel, conferences, and our general way of life has changed. Even the most resilient individuals working in healthcare and education are struggling with some level of burnout. The intensity of caring for patients during a pandemic, the demands often exceeding the staffing resources, constant changes, the unexpected deaths related to COVID, and level of emotional exhaustion is real.

Just when we began to take a breath from the Delta surge, the Omicron variant permeates the news. While some seem to go on about their lives without significant worry, others find themselves with renewed anxieties about infections. Jim Kendall, LCSW, Manager of Vanderbilt Work/Life Connections-EAP gives some advice on how to manage the fears that may reappear with this new variant surge.

October is Depression Awareness Month. Now more than ever, it is important to take stock of your mood and mental health. Learn the signs and symptoms of depression, and the resources available to you.

When there are challenging cases that impact caregiver psychological well-being, Vanderbilt offers a variety of support services for faculty and staff.

When a colleague is impacted by an unanticipated outcome or challenging case, Peer Support Teams within a workgroup proactively offer emotional support to affected peers.

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​Work/Life Connections-EAP coordinates Crisis Intervention Services and Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) Services for the VUMC community. Definition: A Critical Incident is "any event which has the potential to produce unusual or distressing emotional symptoms such as an accident, injury, death, disaster, threat or act of violence, or other traumatic event at the workplace."