08 December 2020 - First Britons receive Covid-19 vaccine
All Eyes on U.K. for Western World’s First Covid Shots
Emily Ashton and Corinne Gretler (Bloomsberg, 08/12/2020)
The U.K.’s National Health Service launched what it has called the biggest immunization campaign in its history, starting Covid vaccinations across the country.
People over 80 are at the front of the line for the shot made by Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE on Tuesday, with tens of thousands expected to get vaccinated in the coming days. The U.K. is the first western nation to begin its program, having approved the jab last week.
Covid vaccine: UK woman, 90, becomes first in world to receive Pfizer jab
Jessica Murray (The Guardian, 08/12/2020)
A 90-year-old woman has become the first patient in the world to receive the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine after its approval in the UK, as the NHS launched its biggest vaccine campaign on Tuesday.
Margaret Keenan received the jab at about 6.45am in Coventry, marking the start of a historic mass vaccination programme.
Vaccines will be administered at 50 hospital hubs around the country, with patients aged 80 and above who are already attending hospital as an outpatient, and those who are being discharged home after a hospital stay, first in line.
Queen to be vaccinated soon as first doses arrive
Dominic Yeatman (Metro, 06/12/2020)
Doses of the coronavirus vaccine have begun arriving in hospitals as staff prepare to begin Operation Courageous — the country’s biggest ever mass inoculation programme.
The Queen is expected to be near the front of the queue for the Covid-19 jab, initially reserved for the over-80s and care home residents.
But senior sources told The Mail On Sunday the 94-year-old monarch and Prince Philip, 99, will not get preferential treatment, but will ‘wait in line’ when the first phase begins tomorrow.
‘Is it safe to have more than one type of COVID vaccine?’ and other questions answered by an immunologist
Tracy Hussell (The Conversation, 07/12/2020)
If we are ever to return to some semblance of normality, then the world’s population needs to be immune to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. But with so many different vaccines in production, questions are undoubtedly going to be raised, such as can I still have a vaccine if I have been involved in a trial testing other versions? And, what if I’ve already had COVID – do I still need a vaccine?
A basic understanding of immunology can answer all these questions. All COVID vaccines try to generate an immune response to proteins the virus needs to enter your cells. Whether this is by using a harmless virus carrying the protein that mimics SARS-CoV-2 but doesn’t replicate, or by using the genetic code for those proteins (a messenger RNA), the outcome is the same. The protein critical to stopping SARS-CoV-2 is displayed, recognised by the immune system, and the body produces antibodies and T cells that are then ready to stop future infection.