Tears, relief, gratitude and an end to a long, difficult road in sight.
Amy Fry’s eyes glittered above her medical mask.
“I feel excited,” said the nurse in Harborview Covid’s intensive care unit. “For the first time in a while I feel hope.”
On Tuesday, Seattle reached a historic milestone when about a dozen health professionals and first responders were vaccinated against Covid-19 at UW Medical Center in Montlake in what was a first batch of vaccinations.
Second in line was nurse Emily Agudo in the emergency room, who works at UW Medical Center – Northwest.
“There is a lot of fear: ‘We bear it right [personal protective equipment]? she said. “People come in with stomach pains, nausea, vomiting … Is it food poisoning, is it your appendix tearing? Or is it Covid?”
Vaccination today was a relief, she said.
Allison Miller gave her the injection, which usually works on a floor treating leukemia and lymphoma patients. Miller was one of the many people who administered the vaccine.
Miller’s voice faded as she asked vaccine recipients a series of standard screening questions.
For each vaccination, Miller removed the syringe and needle from their packaging, inserted the needle into a vial of Pfizer-BioNtech Covid vaccine reconstituted with sodium chloride, and drew a dose of 0.3 milliliters.
“The skills are the same, but they weigh much more heavily on what we’ve all been through,” she said. “I gave birth in late February, and it has really been a time of seclusion for me – just protecting a newborn from all these strangers.”
The vaccinations mean she will soon be able to finally introduce her son to a family he’s never met, Miller said.
Respiratory care specialist Jules Mack also received an injection in the arm today.
In the past, some family members have argued with her, falsely saying that Covid is not real. But today her family is proud of her, she said.
“Even though people are concerned, when they see you step out there and take a vaccine, they start to think a little bit,” she said. “Maybe they come out and do the same thing and get vaccinated.”
Clinical Nurse Specialist Kaitlyn Drew observed everyone vaccinated for at least 15 minutes.
“We just let them sit in a chair and relax; we have some juice and water there for them if they need it, ”Drew said.
The people who received the vaccines today only reported a sore arm afterward and no other immediate side effects, she said.
Thursday and Friday, more health workers will be vaccinated at the University of Washington and other hospitals in the state. The university aims to vaccinate up to 1,000 people a day, said Dr. John Lynch, medical director of infection prevention at Harborview.
During the initial rollout of vaccines, Washington State expects to have enough doses for about half a million people in the coming weeks.
Dr. Thuan Ong, penultimate in line, struggled to get words out as he sat down to get vaccinated. He works in nursing homes, and wasn’t until 1am this morning, he said.
‘I told them I need to get a vaccination today. And the look of despair – of “May I come with you?” Said Ong. “I feel very privileged.”