'Extremely vulnerable' Chesterfield man speaks out after getting Covid-19 vaccine

A staff member at Chestefield Royal Hospital who is ‘extremely vulnerable’ to coronavirus due to his health condition has spoken out about how grateful he is to have been one of the first to be vaccinated.
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After shielding throughout the pandemic, Ian Hazel, Director of IT and Infrastructure at Chesterfield Royal was the first extremely clinically vulnerable staff member to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

Mr Hazel has been receiving haemo-dialysis for the last 18 years, after a kidney transplant operation failed, so is particularly susceptible to illness caused by the virus.

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Receiving the vaccine yesterday (December 8) Mr Hazel said: “I appreciate that it won’t immediately change my life as it is now.”

Ian Hazel after receiving his vaccination.Ian Hazel after receiving his vaccination.
Ian Hazel after receiving his vaccination.

"However, for me it’s another measure of protection alongside frequent hand-washing, wearing a face mask and social distancing.

"During most of the pandemic I have been working from home and I’ve had to go for walks at the crack of dawn to avoid seeing other people. I’ll still need to keep myself safe, but it is reassuring to be right at the starting point of the vaccination programme.

“As more people across the country are vaccinated I hope it will enable a gradual return to normal for everyone.

Ian Hazel was one of the first to be vaccinated at Chesterfield Royal.Ian Hazel was one of the first to be vaccinated at Chesterfield Royal.
Ian Hazel was one of the first to be vaccinated at Chesterfield Royal.
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“I’d like to thank colleagues in the hospital for their incredible work to make the Royal one of the first 50 hospital vaccination hubs.

"It’s been organised at rapid speed and I am sure others like me will be equally delighted to have the chance of having the vaccine over the coming weeks and months. It feels like a positive step in the right direction.”

A hospital spokesperson added: “With five sessions of dialysis a week taking place during the night, [Mr Hazel] is only too aware that his medical condition makes him more susceptible if he were to contract Coronavirus.

"People with long-term and underlying health issues are much more likely to be hospitalised with COVID-19, and its effects are often more devastating.”

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Chesterfield Royal Hospital vaccinated its first patients yesterday, as the largest vaccination roll out in NHS history started.

The hospital was selected as one of 53 trusts which will store and administer the approved Pfizer vaccine.