In the United Kingdom, the vaccination campaign started with the Coronavirus vaccine from the University of Oxford and the pharmaceutical manufacturer AstraZeneca on Monday. Brian Pinker, 82, from Oxford, was the first in the world to be vaccinated in need of dialysis, so he is among those at risk in two ways and thus among the first to be vaccinated.
“The vaccine means everything to me,” he says. “For me, this is the only way to get back to normal life. The virus is horrific, isn’t it? I’m so happy that I got the Oxford vaccine, and I’m so happy.”
The big advantage of the Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine is that it does not require deep freezing during transportation, while the Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine must be stored at minus 70 degrees during transportation.
“We have reached a new stage in the battle,” said a professor at Imperial College London. “In the beginning it was a science competition. We are now coming to a new part of the vaccination campaign, which means logistics. Are we able to build a cold supply chain? Can we organize enough people to vaccinate? Can we produce enough doses without any problems? A different kind. Fighting, and also great. “
The vaccination campaign also started in France between the two holidays. The BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine was first used in two nursing homes.
Six vaccination centers for health workers have opened in Berlin. One of these venues, Arena Hall, used to function as a popular concert venue prior to the outbreak.