First Fife nurse gets COVID vaccine: 'Must do all we can to protect most vulnerable'

Marie Paterson was vaccinated on Tuesday by her colleague, Candice Ross, at the Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy.

Both nurses are set to play an important role in the roll-out of the vaccination programme across the Kingdom.

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NHS Fife received the first batch of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines earlier this week after it was approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

Those vaccinated against coronavirus receive two doses of the vaccine which is given around three-four weeks apart.Healthcare workers involved in delivering the Covid-19 vaccine in Fife will be amongst the first to be vaccinated, along with those involved in directly caring for patients with the virus.After receiving the jab, Marie Paterson said: “I was delighted to be given the opportunity to be the first person in Fife vaccinated against Covid-19. I feel a real sense of duty to be vaccinated and I think it’s really important that we, as healthcare staff, do all we can to protect the most vulnerable in our society.”The roll-out of the vaccination programme is scheduled to take a number of months, with those most at risk of the effects of the virus prioritised.

The programme in Fife, like elsewhere in Scotland, will follow the independent advice received from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), which recommends prioritising those at greatest clinical need.The vaccination of care home residents in Scotland is due to begin next week.Carol Potter, NHS Fife chief executive, said: “I’m delighted to see the first vaccinations carried out here in Fife.

"We have been preparing for the rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine for a number of months, and while we expect a mass vaccination of this scale to be challenging, we are confident that the necessary preparations are in place to enable us to deliver the vaccine effectively.

"This is by no means the end of the pandemic, however, and it’s vital that people in Fife continue to follow the public health measures in place.

“The roll-out of our vaccination programme will take months and we ask our population to remain patient as we follow the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation advice in prioritising those most at risk of the effects of Covid-19”.

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