Daily US Times: A 90-year-old woman has become the first person to be given a Covid vaccine as part of the mass vaccination programme being rolled out across the United Kingdom.
Margaret Keenan, who is originally from Enniskillen, and who turns 91 next week, said it was the “best early birthday present”.
She was given the Covid vaccine at 06:31 GMT – the first of 800,000 doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine that will be given in the coming weeks.
Up to four million more people are expected by the end of the month.
Hubs in the UK will vaccinate over-80s and some health and care staff – the programme aims to protect those who are most vulnerable and return life to normal.
About 70 hospitals across the nation are gearing up to deliver vaccines this week.
At University Hospital, Coventry, matron May Parsons administered the very first vaccine to Ms Keenan.
Ms Keenan said: “I feel so privileged to be the first person vaccinated against Covid-19, 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.”
“I can’t thank May and the NHS staff enough who have looked after me tremendously, and my advice to anyone offered the vaccine is to take it – if I can have it at 90 then you can have it too,” she said.
The UK became the first country in the world to start using the Pfizer vaccine after regulators approved its use last week.
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