NEW YORK – Sandra Lindsay, a critical-care nurse for more than 20 years, created history by becoming the first person in the United States to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gave emergency approval last Friday to the vaccine developed by German Company BioNTech and its US partner Pfizer.

The nurse who works in the Intensive Care Unit at Long Island Jewish Medical Hospital in New York is Jamaican and she is urging her countryfolk to get it as well.

She went on to urge people to ignore conspiracy theories that hinder efforts of widespread vaccination. She said, “My hope is that this is the beginning of the end of the pandemic. I have seen what it has done and what it is doing to our people, and I just want it to be over.”

The list of skeptics includes vast crosssections of the citizenry including healthcare workers and security officers. it is clear that most people have a distrust of vaccinations.

Having seen first-hand the suffering and pain COVID-19 has caused in New York, Lindsay said that she was eager to get her shot. She confirmed that she was not pressured or paid, but that she volunteered because she has a desire to see this pandemic end.

“I feel the healing is coming. I hope this marks the beginning of the end of the very painful time in our history,” said Lindsay

New York Mayor Bill DeBlasio said that it was fitting that Lindsay, 52, was the first to get the shot and Governor Andrew Cuomo said that he felt hopeful and relieved.

Healthcare workers and nursing home residents will be first in line for the vaccination.

The FDA instructed providers not to give the vaccine to those with a known history of severe allergic reactions to any of its ingredients