UConn Health received its initial COVID-19 vaccine shipment from Pfizer on Dec. 15, and that afternoon vaccinated its first 35 employees with their first of two doses of the vaccine, recommended to be administered three weeks apart.<\/p>\n
One week later, some of those employees – among the very first people in the U.S. to be vaccinated – offered their perspective for the nearly 900 employees who followed them, and the many more employees and others to come, so they can have a greater sense of what to expect.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel great,\u201d says UConn Health CEO Andy Agwunobi. \u201cJust a little bit of soreness around the injection site, but otherwise great.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI haven\u2019t developed any symptoms after getting the vaccine. \u00a0I\u2019m feeling great,\u201d says Dr. David Banach, Hospital Epidemiologist and Infectious Diseases expert at UConn Health.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy arm was sore for one day like a flu shot, but I had no other symptoms and have none including no arm soreness,\u201d says Dr. Robert Fuller, chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine.<\/p>\n
\u201cExcellent! I had a little arm soreness for about 24 hours but I get that with all my shots, so it wasn\u2019t a surprise. No other symptoms at all! It was spectacular,\u201d says Dr. Alise Frallicciardi of the Emergency Medicine Department. \u201cGo science!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI am feeling just fine after the vaccine,” says Maria Clement, an APRN in Employee Health. “Approximately seven hours post-vaccine, my upper arm became sore at the injection site, and that continued through the next day. Other than that, it was fine. I was excited to be part of the first UConn Health team to receive it and I am ready for the second one.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe injection was painless,” says John Lombardi, of Facilities Management at UConn Health. “I just relaxed my arm muscle and it was done.\u00a0 I had no side effects other than very slight soreness in the shoulder muscle for a few days. This was okay and welcome, as it reminded me of how fortune I am to have my body building antibodies to protect me from the COVID-19 virus and from spreading the disease, especially to my family.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel well! Aside from mild arm soreness, there were no concerns or issues,\u201d says Dr. Raymond Foley, director of UConn John Dempsey Hospital\u2019s Medical Intensive Care Unit.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll is well. I had no side effects.\u00a0\u00a0Several of my coworkers are concerned about the vaccine or its side effects because it is issued under an emergency authorization. I hope that my experience helps diminish their concerns, because I believe that the vaccine’s known benefits outweigh the possible side effects,\u201d says Maggie Silver, Deputy Chief of UConn Police on the Farmington campus.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll good! I am feeling great. The day after, my arm was a little sore, but that went away the following day. I didn\u2019t feel any difference with energy and didn\u2019t have a fever,\u201d says Anne Horbatuck, VP of Ambulatory Services for UConn Health.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter all the hype it was anticlimactic,\u201d says Dr. Kevin Dieckhaus, Chief of Infectious Diseases at UConn Health. \u201cIt was basically just like the flu shot, a tiny bit of soreness for a day, and nothing more.\u201d<\/p>\n