The United Kingdom has become the first Western nation to begin vaccinating its citizens with a COVID-19 shot outside of clinical trials -a landmark moment in the coronavirus disease.
The first Briton to get the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, 90-year-old, Margaret Keenan received the first of two doses at 6:31 a.m. local time on Tuesday at University Hospital in Coventry, less than a week after the UK became the first country to approve it.
Keenan, who turns 91 next week, said she felt “privileged” to be first to get the shot.
It’s the best early birthday present I could wish for because it means I can finally look forward to spending time with my family and friends in the New Year after being on my own for most of the year,” she said, according to a statement released by the UK’s National Health Service (NHS).
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The logistical challenges of manufacturing and distributing tens of millions of vaccines mean the roll-out will be gradual, with the most vulnerable people and health care workers first in line.
May Parsons, the nurse who administered the historic jab, said she was honored to be involved in the program. “The last few months have been tough for all of us working in the NHS, but now it feels like there is light at the end of the tunnel,” she said.
The UK has ordered 40 million doses of the vaccine, but only 800,000 shots will be available as part of the first wave that began on Tuesday.
Because the vaccine requires two doses, administered at least three weeks apart, the UK will have enough shots to vaccinate roughly a third of the country’s population. The country has also ordered 7 million doses of the Moderna vaccine, which could be approved for emergency use in the UK within the next few weeks.
There will be 50 vaccination hubs in hospitals across England and dozens more across Wales and Scotland. In England, the first wave of vaccinations will only be administered in hospitals. Wales and Scotland have yet to specify the types of locations they plan to have administer the vaccine.
(CNN)
