‘First in the queue for a jab!’
Brits get initial round of coronavirus vaccine
Mike Underwood is a former Herald reporter now back home in England.
As the world watched amid a chirping symphony of camera shutters and a strobing barrage of flash guns, 90-year-old Maggie Keenan’s smiling eyes watched back.
She barely noticed the syringe enter her skin as senior nurse May Parsons almost gracefully delivered the injection and she became the first person on the planet to have the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. The much-lauded miracle of science.
To some in the UK, the vaccine is a symbol of humanity’s resistance to COVID-19. A first volley back against the invisible enemy which has stalked the globe. A moment of hope.
To others, however, concerns continue to niggle around the safety of the vaccine because of the speed at which it was developed. On Wednesday, the UK issued a warning to people with a history of ‘significant’ allergic reactions to avoid the jab after two nurses suffered adverse, allergic reactions to the vaccine Tuesday.
Max Dale, 44, works with vulnerable people in the heart of Leicestershire, one of the UK’s coronavirus infection hotspots. He said: “I have mixed views, really. It will be reassuring for a lot of people who are vulnerable, due to age and existing health conditions. In addition, those people who have been unable to work or open their business must feel positive that the vaccine may bring an end to the restrictive lockdowns.
“But I’m also wary that the vaccine has been rushed out and I am concerned there may be negative side effects or issues that arise that could be more hazardous to me than COVID would be,” he added.
Max said he hopes the vaccine helps society return to normal and that those who do not wish to have it are not restricted from having equal access to society.
“Either way, with a vaccine now here, I want to see an end to the punitive, contradictory restrictions that, in my view, have had a more damaging impact on the country than COVID itself,” he added.
Anne Knight, 70, and her husband Tony, 71, are both semi-retired in rural Leicestershire and are delighted that the UK is the first to roll out the vaccine. They have been prevented from spending time with their wider family for months due to the restrictions.
Anne said: “We will be first in the queue for a jab! Not only because we are a certain age, but also so we can benefit from having more contact with our family and feeling fairly secure that if we do catch COVID, it will not be a death sentence. “It’s such a very cruel way to die, alone and in pain,” she added. “Even younger people are dying if infected, so we will not be spending five days with family at Christmas.”
Andrina Silcock, 48, lives in Derbyshire, also in the Midlands of England. Her mother lives in a care home and she hasn’t seen her since March. To Andrina, the vaccine offers re-connection.
“I think it’s good that the UK is taking the lead and taking action and it is so great to see our older generation leading the way and with such calmness and stoicism,” Andrina said.
“Personally, I hope it means I can see my mum in person for the first time since 16 March,” she added. “On a wider level I hope we can get back to some sort of normal — but not leaving behind some of the things from lockdown, such as people being friendlier and supporting local communities more than ever. And being more aware of people in need.”
Adam Wilcock, 44, of Leicestershire, and his partner are facing Christmas away from family because of concerns around infections. Even so, he is a little more nervous of the vaccine rollout.
“I feel concerned that our elderly and vulnerable are taking an experimental vaccine first without any clear understanding of long-term effects or its interactions with other medications,” he said. “Lockdowns became about protecting the elderly and vulnerable, so if they’re vaccinated then I hope it will return life to normal quickly.”
Grandmother Pamela Long, 71, is proud that the UK is leading the way and hopes the vaccine will help the country return to some form of normality.
“I feel proud of the fact that the UK have shown foresight in monitoring the development of the vaccine and leading it to this stage,” she said. “I hope that the vaccine will mark the start of the country’s economic recovery and give us back some peace of mind so that we can have a reasonable quality of life once more.”