A retired British salesman received the first shot in the country’s COVID-19 vaccination program on Tuesday. It was the start of an unprecedented global vaccination campaign designed to provide a way out of a pandemic that killed 1.5 million people.
Margaret Keenan, who will turn 91 next week, was shot at 6:31 am at what public health officials have referred to as “V-Day.” She was first in line at University Hospital Coventry, one of several hospitals across the country handling the initial stages of the UK program. Fortunately, the second injection was given to a man named William Shakespeare, an 81-year-old from Warwickshire, the county where the bard was born.
“I feel so privileged to be the first person to be vaccinated against COVID-19,” said Keenan, who wore a surgical mask and a blue Merry Christmas T-shirt that featured a cartoon penguin and one Santa hat was decorated. “It’s the best early birthday gift I could ever wish for because it means I can finally look forward to spending time with my family and friends in the New Year after being alone for most of the year . “
The UK is the first western country to launch a mass vaccination program after UK regulators last week approved the use of a COVID-19 shot developed by US drug maker Pfizer and German company BioNTech. US and European Union regulators could approve the vaccine in the coming days or weeks, fueling global vaccination efforts.
The UK program is likely to give lessons to other countries as they prepare for the unprecedented task of vaccinating billions of people. British health officials have been working for months to adapt a system that aims to vaccinate groups of people such as school children and pregnant women to one that can quickly reach much of the country’s population.
Amid the fanfare that welcomed the UK’s first shot, authorities warned the vaccination campaign would last for many months, meaning painful restrictions that have disrupted daily life and penalized the economy are likely to last until spring.
“We still have a long way to go, but this marks the way,” UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock told the BBC.
Other vaccines are also being reviewed by regulators around the world, including a collaboration between Oxford University and drug maker AstraZeneca, and one developed by US biotech company Moderna.
Britain received 800,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine, enough to vaccinate 400,000 people. The first recordings go to people over 80 who are either in the hospital or already have outpatient appointments, as well as to nursing home workers and vaccination staff. Others have to wait their turn.
Health officials have asked the public to be patient as only those most at risk of the virus will be vaccinated at an early stage. Medical staff will be contacting people to make appointments, and most will have to wait until next year before there are enough vaccines to expand the program.
Buckingham Palace refused to comment on reports that Queen Elizabeth II, 94, and her 99-year-old husband, Prince Philip, were being vaccinated and promoted as a public example of the safety of the shot.
The UK is the first country to deliver a broadly tested and independently verified vaccine to the general public. On Saturday, Russia began vaccinating thousands of doctors, teachers and others at dozen of centers in Moscow with its Sputnik V vaccine. China has also begun taking home-made recordings for its citizens domestically and selling them overseas. These products are viewed differently, however, as both countries’ vaccines have completed the late-stage studies that scientists believe are essential to demonstrating the safety and effectiveness of a vaccine.
The vaccine cannot arrive early enough in the UK, where more than 61,000 people have been killed in the pandemic – more than any other country in Europe, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The UK has registered more than 1.7 million confirmed cases of the virus.
However, the vaccine remains experimental. While it appears to prevent people from getting sick, it is still unclear how long this protection lasts.
The 800,000 cans the UK has received so far is only a fraction of what is needed. The government targets more than 25 million people, or approximately 40% of the population, in the first phase of its vaccination program, with the highest priority being given to those at the highest risk of disease.
Stephen Powis, medical director for the National Health Service in England, said the first shot was an emotional moment.
“Does this really feel like the beginning of the end? he said. “It’s been a really terrible year 2020 – all the things we’re so used to meeting friends and family, going to the movies, have been disrupted. We can get that back. Not tomorrow. Not next week. Not next month. But in the coming months?
The vaccination program will be expanded as the offer increases, with the vaccine being offered roughly according to age groups, starting with the oldest people. The UK plans to offer COVID-19 vaccines to all over 50s as well as younger adults with health problems that are at higher risk for the virus.
READ MORE: Canada will receive 249,000 doses of Pfizer vaccine in December, Trudeau says
In England, the vaccine will be distributed to 50 hospital centers in the first wave of the program. Other hospitals are expected to offer it as the rollout progresses. Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales make their own plans under the UK system of decentralized management.
Logistical problems are slowing the spread of the Pfizer vaccine as it has to be stored at minus 70 degrees Celsius. Authorities are also focusing on large distribution points as each vaccine pack contains 975 doses and they don’t want any to go to waste.
The UK has agreed to buy more than 350 million doses of vaccine from seven different manufacturers. Governments around the world are entering into agreements with multiple developers to ensure they secure delivery of the products that will ultimately be approved for widespread use.
All of these logistical challenges culminated in Nurse May Parsons inserting a syringe into Keenan’s left shoulder and pushing the plunger to deliver the vaccine. Originally from the Philippines, Parsons has worked for the NHS for 24 years.
“I’m just glad to be able to play a role on this historic day,” she said. “The past few months have been difficult for all of us who work in the NHS, but now it seems like there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.”
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Danica Kirka, The Associated Press
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