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Margaret Keenan, who became the world’s first patient to receive the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine outside of a clinical trial, took her second hit.
The 91-year-old grandmother received the booster injection at Coventry University Hospital on Tuesday, three weeks after making history with the first one on December 8.
Some 616,933 people in the UK had coronavirus puncture between that day and Dec. 20, according to the most recent Health Department figures released last week.
But Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Christmas Eve that nearly 800,000 people had received their first dose of the two-stage vaccine.
The initial hits were in hospitals, but since then the deployment has expanded to sites run by GPs and nursing homes.
Successful delivery of the first full course of the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine comes as COVID-19 Cases are on the rise across the UK, with more infections reported on Monday than at any other time during the pandemic.
Ms. Keenan, a grandmother of four, stated that it was “a privilege” when she got her first dose and described it as “the best anticipated birthday gift you could wish for” as it meant that you could spend time with your family and friends “after being alone” for most of 2020.
It comes when ministers have been warned that the UK must double your vaccination goal to two million a week to prevent a third wave of the coronavirus, and England’s hospitals treat more patients than during the peak of the first wave and the UK recording their highest daily increase in COVID cases, with 41,385.
The government hopes that the planned imminent approval of the Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine will allow for the expansion of the vaccination program, which currently relies solely on the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine.
The European Union has launched its vaccination program and aims for all adults in the bloc to be vaccinated by the end of 2021.
However, some areas of Germany have experienced delays due to problems with vaccine transport at cold enough temperatures.
The United States has approved both the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine and the Modern for emergency use during the pandemic.
A few days before Christmas, President-elect Joe Biden, 78, received a dose of Pfizer vaccine on live TV as part of a growing effort to convince the American public that vaccines are safe.
Professor Andy Hardy, Executive Director of University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, where Ms Keenan received her injection, said: “We are delighted to welcome Margaret Keenan to Coventry University Hospital today to safely receive the second doses of the vaccine, after she became the first person in the world to receive Pfizer COVID-19 after clinical approval.
“Our hardworking staff who have been involved in the vaccination program have stayed in contact with Margaret’s family since that day and we are delighted that Margaret has continued to recover well at home after her discharge from the hospital.
“It’s important for everyone to show up to take the hit when invited to do so, and like other hospitals and GP surgeries across the country, we will be following the latest expert advice and testing to invite people to get vaccinated at that time. They need it. “
