Jewish Care residents at Anita Dorfman House in Harrow have become part of the first wave of vaccinations against coronavirus, with around 60 receiving their first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine yesterday. 

At the same time, more than 40 staff were vaccinated by an external team of healthcare professionals. 

One resident, 85-year-old Evelyn White, said the vaccine was “a right step in a right direction” upon receiving hers. 

Meanwhile, Elizabeth Mandeya, Anita Dorfman’s manager, reported staff and residents’ excitement while queuing for the vaccine, adding that they were “grateful” to be chosen. 

Earlier in December, Jewish Care staff were among the first to receive the vaccine following its approval in the UK. So far, 80 staff across their premises on the front line have received the jab. 

Daniel Carmel-Brown, Chief Executive, Jewish Care, described the situation as “an incredible end to an extremely tough year for our residents and staff, and we hope that this vaccine is the start of finding our way back to some kind of normality.”