Prince William is 'very proud' of Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip for getting COVID-19 vaccines

Prince William is "very proud" of his grandparents, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, for getting COVID-19 vaccinations last week, he said in a recent video chat with healthcare workers.

"It's really important that everyone gets their vaccine," he added in a new clip from the chat released over the weekend.

Both Will, 38, and his father, Prince Charles, 72, tested positive for COVID-19 but experienced mild symptoms and recovered.

The prince and Duchess Kate of Cambridge continued their efforts last week to cheer up frontline pandemic workers under mental-health strain as a surge in COVID-19 cases intensifies in the United Kingdom.

On Wednesday, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge appeared on a video conference call with seven health and social counselors and emergency workers to talk about the mental-health impact of the pandemic and why frontline workers need access to support services.

The royal couple discussed Hospice UK’s Just 'B' counseling and bereavement support line, which has received funding from Will and Kate's Royal Foundation partnered with the National Health Service and the government's national health agency, according to Kensington Palace.

Just ‘B’ provides confidential and free bereavement and well-being counseling for anxiety, trauma and the stresses from dealing with the pandemic death toll, in addition to dealing with personal bereavement and loss.

Promoting good mental health and erasing the stigma of acknowledging mental-health matters has been a major project for Will and Kate, 39, and their Royal Foundation. In part, their interest is an outgrowth of the trauma Prince William and his brother Prince Harry, 36, endured when their mother, Princess Diana, died in a Paris car wreck in 1997 when they were still boys.

The COVID-19 pandemic, which has already infected millions around the globe, has killed more than 89,000 in Britain, where the surge in new cases has led the government to order new lockdowns.

Death rates in hospitals and in communities have risen significantly in recent months, forcing health and social workers and emergency responders to deal with a level of fatalities they have never experienced before, according to the palace.

Just ‘B’ counsellors Tony Collins and Caroline Francis spoke to the royals about how callers often cite exhaustion and the relentless nature of the crisis as their reasons for calling, and how support services help them cope and begin to come to terms with their grief.

Others workers on the call stressed the need to encourage frontline workers to use mental-health resources and not be put off by perceived stigma from seeking help, especially during a health crisis.

As a result of the surge in the pandemic, all schools in London have been shut down, including the school where Prince George, 7, and Princess Charlotte, 5, are students. The Cambridges are believed to be sheltering again at their country retreat, Anmer Hall, in Norfolk, and carrying out virtual engagements in the manner they did in the early months of the crisis.

The Cambridges' most recent public appearance was in mid-December when they took their kids, including little Prince Louis, 2, to the London Palladium for a charity pantomime performance hosted by The National Lottery to thank key workers and their families for their efforts during the pandemic this year.

Contributing: Hannah Yasharoff

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Prince William 'very proud' of queen for getting COVID vaccine