“There is light at the end of the tunnel”

A 90-year-old grandmother in England became the world’s first patient to receive the Pfizer / BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine this morning.

The UK approved the use of the Pfizer vaccine last week, and the nation’s National Health Service is already rolling out its mass immunization program, with Margaret ‘Maggie’ Keenan, who will celebrate her 91st birthday next week, receiving her historic shot from Nurse May Parsons today at 6:31 am in Coventry.

Maggie, a retired jewelry assistant and grandmother of four, said her vaccination was “the best early birthday present she could wish for.”

Wearing a “Merry Christmas” charity sweater with a festive penguin, Maggie, who has been isolating herself for most of 2020, explained to the Associated Press, “I can finally look forward to spending time with my family and friends in the New Years after being alone for most of the year.”

Nurse Parsons, who is from the Philippines and has been working for the NHS for 24 years, said: the Guardian, “I am glad to be able to participate in this historic day. The last few months have been difficult for all of us who work in the NHS, but now there seems to be light at the end of the tunnel. “

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The UK is the first country in the world to approve the Pfizer vaccine and has purchased 40 million doses. Proven to be 95% effective in trials, Britain’s most vulnerable – certain people over 80, hospital staff and nursing home workers – are now receiving their first vaccinations.

The same vaccine is currently under review for emergency approval by the FDA in the United States. Assent It is expected to happen in a few days. From there, 6.4 million doses are expected to be delivered during the first week.

The poorest countries will not be left out. GNN reported in November that the Vaccine Alliance has raised $ 2 billion to buy COVID-19 injections for low- and middle-income countries.

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The Pfizer vaccine is not the only vaccine that has been shown to have high success rates against COVID-19 in late-stage trials. the The Moderna vaccine has also shown encouraging resultsand the University of Oxford 70.4% efficacy results with AstraZeneca have been confirmed today under peer review.

(CLOCK The Guardian video of Maggie’s historic morning below).

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