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Healthcare staff at the frontline got the first dose of Covid-19 vaccine.
Dr Mangal More
Andheri
“It is the first day of vaccination across the country. We are lucky to be among the first few to be vaccinated,” said More, who has worked with the civic body for over five years.
Travelling to work was a challenge after the Mumbai local trains were shut in March. “Many of our community health workers took four hours to reach work by changing buses multiple times,” says More. But the biggest concern, she said, was the safety of her family. More lives in the Matunga labour camp area with her husband, his parents, two brothers and a six-year-old daughter in a small 275-square feet home. “Social distancing was very tough. Those days, I did not remove my mask even at home,” she says.
In May, both More and her in-laws tested positive. “I shifted my in-laws to a hospital. I quarantined myself by arranging for a separate room near my house. Thankfully, my daughter tested negative,” she said.
Sanjay Deshmukh
JJ Hospital
DESHMUKH WAS first among the staffers to arrive at the hospital at 9.30 am to get the first shot of Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin. As the hospital staff completed last-minute arrangements to begin the vaccination process, Deshmukh allayed fears of those waiting with him.
Having survived Covid-19 and working at the frontline, Deshmukh appealed to people for confidence in the vaccine. “After suffering from fever for four days, I suddenly collapsed and was rushed to hospital, where my swab test showed that I was Covid-19 positive. For almost a month, I was on oxygen support. Getting Covaxin today was the least scary thing of my life.”
Deshmukh said he received a message from the hospital administration at 7 am on Saturday, stating that he was accepted for vaccination. Deshmukh was the sixth person to receive Covaxin at the centre.
Anita Borhad
JJ Hospital
“Initially, after reading the message, I did rethink if I should get the vaccine immediately or wait a day. There was no fear, the vaccine is rolled out for health workers across the country, the government must have approved it after necessary trials,” Borhad said.
A resident of Pune, Borhad joined JJ Hospital last month from Pune’s Sassoon General Hospital. As a lab technician, Borhad was in charge of swab collection for Covid-19 test. Remembering the time when she quarantined herself and could not meet her children, Borhad said, “There is hope, now.”
Kanchan Kokale
Dr VN Desai Hospital
WHEN THE pandemic was declared in March, Mulund resident Kanchan Kokale’s son was eight months old. “My constant worry was that I have spent the whole day working in crowded areas interacting with people to conduct tests, trace contacts of infected persons. Once I reached home, I took all precautions before meeting my son but those months were anxious for me as a mother,” Kokale said.
Among the first few beneficiaries at Dr VN Desai Hospital in Santacruz, Kokale waited for her turn from 9.30 am. “I was nervous about getting a vaccine till I came here.”
Shreyas Patel
Cooper Hospital
A PRACTICING dentist, Shreyash Patel decided to apply for the post of Covid assistant medical officer after reading about the civic body’s hiring during the pandemic. He was assigned work at MIDC in K-East ward of the city, primarily working in the Covid-19 war room set up by the BMC.
“The vaccination will help me explain the process better when I receive calls or have to go into the community in the next few months to explain its benefits,” Patel said.
Snehal Rane
BKC
A RESIDENT of Kalwa in Thane, Rane, who is set to retire soon, had a difficult time coping with the stress of seeing her fellow colleagues getting infected. “I have been working for 30 years with the BMC. But Covid-19 has shown us very difficult times. Many of my colleagues were infected due to the virus. Now I am happy that the vaccine has arrived. After getting a call from the BMC, I reached the centre early in the morning. We worked day and night during the peak of Covid-19,” said Rane.
Dr Jawahar Panjwani
BKC
DR PANJWANI has had an active orthopaedic practice for the past two decades. After his shot, Dr Panjwani claimed that the vaccination process was once in a lifetime experience for him.
“I will soon be back to work. This is a proud moment and we are thankful to the government for taking this initiative. But one thing I want to request, everyone should still wear a mask, maintain distancing and wash their hands even after being vaccinated,” said Dr Panjwani.
Dr Bharti Rajulwala
Rajawadi Hospital
“EVERYBODY IS fighting the virus. I am happy that finally there is a vaccine that could bring normal life back. If this mass is successfully immunised, then we will be the winner in this fight…”
Recalling her losses due to Covid-19, she said, “People lost their loved ones in this pandemic. I lost my mother-in-law due to Covid. My son also tested positive for the virus.”
She added, “One of my colleagues lost three of her relatives in one month. This was a disaster.”
Santoshi Shirsat
Chembur
SHIRSAT, WHO works in the Integrated Child Development Services centre at Chembur, arrived at Rajawadi Hospital along with some other colleagues. While taking the shots, she wanted her photo to be clicked and requested one of the staff members to click photos from her phone. “I am excited and happy to get the vaccine. I hope people will not have to face the trauma that was caused by Covid-19,” Shirsat said.
Ramdas Mahad
Jawhar
ON SATURDAY, as he oversaw preparations from glitches in the CoWIN software to escorting local politicians, to asking all staff to be present for vaccination, Mahad said he “has mixed feelings” about the vaccine. “There is a scare and there is excitement about vaccination. I have been going through both,” he said. He was one of the 100 hospital staffers shortlisted for inoculation on Saturday in Jawhar. Mahad has closely followed the vaccine trials.
Poonam Palvi & Deepa Devde
Jawhar Sub-District Hospital
THE TWO staff nurses donned multiple hats on Saturday, from drawing rangoli at the vaccination centre’s entrance to cutting paper slips for tokens, from vaccinating other health workers with an intramuscular jab to getting the shot themselves, the two were vaccinators as well as beneficiaries as the immunisation drive against Covid-19 began across India.
“Since only two of us are trained here, I first vaccinated her and then she vaccinated me after returning from the observation room,” said Palvi.
After having treated a slew of patients from the tribal-dominated area, the two said they were happy to be vaccinated. “Vaccine is a good thing. We need it to reduce the caseload and there is no hesitation among any of us,” Devde said.
Both did not get the required text message stating that they were going to be beneficiaries. It was their bosses who asked them to get ready for the vaccination.
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