Brian Pinker, 82, a retired dialysis patient was the first person in the UK to receive the approved COVID-19 jab by Oxford-AstraZeneca. Brian received the jab at the Churchill hospital in Oxford, England and left in good spirits, saying about his experience, "I'm so pleased to be getting the COVID vaccine today and really proud it is one that was invented in Oxford."
"Now really look forward to celebrating my 48th wedding anniversary with my wife Shirley later this year,” he said in a statement released by the NHS.
Phase 3 clinical trials showed that the jab, named ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, was 70 percent effective. Unusually, efficiency rose to 90 percent in people who received a small dose followed by a full dose. The NHS is currently looking to provide people with two standard doses, 12 weeks apart.
The Oxford-AstraZeneca jab is one of two COVID-19 vaccines recently approved by regulators for use in the UK. The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine received approval earlier last month with mass inoculations already underway.
UK Health Secretary, Matt Hancock, told the BBC this morning, "It's going to be a tough few weeks ahead, but this is the way out."
For more information about COVID-19, check out the IFLScience COVID-19 hub where you can follow the current state of the pandemic, the progress of vaccine development, and further insights into the disease.
