RIYADH — Hasna Abu Bakr's voice choked with emotions as she expressed her joy over getting the unique opportunity to administer the COVID-19 vaccine shot to Minister of Health Dr. Tawfiq Al-Rabiah. In a ceremony held in the presence of print and visual media persons at the Riyadh International Conference Center, Dr. Al-Rabiah received the first dose of the vaccine on Thursday, thus becoming the first Saudi citizen to get vaccinated against coronavirus. Hasna is a Saudi graduate of the Medical Care College in Riyadh affiliated with Al-Yamamah University. In an interview with Al-Arabiya.net, Hasna, a laboratory specialist, expressed the unique experience of giving the first shot to none other than the minister of health himself. Hasna said she had no idea about it until an hour before the launch of the vaccine injection process. When Hasna was informed about it, she felt very happy for the trust reposed in her. "When the minister came, I felt a bit nervous, then I began to inject confidence into myself believing that I am going to do my role and the VIP is simply a normal patient. Dr. Al-Rabiah thanked and invited me and other members of the team one by one." "When I heard the words of encouragement from the minister, I was choked with emotions and was not in a position as how to respond due to an overwhelming feeling of joy. After administering the injection, I requested his permission to take a picture with him, and he readily agreed to take a memorial snap," she said. Hasna said she specialized in clinical laboratories. "Laboratory specialists are among the best medical practitioners to administer injections because they specialize in jobs such as taking blood samples or performing blood donation drives and they are involved in the process of determining the vein from which blood is required to be drawn. Therefore the work is easy for any medical practitioner just like an emergency doctor, staff nurse, or general practitioner, and all those with these specialties can give an intramuscular injection," she said. Hasna thanked Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman for the great support and care for the Saudi people, and the concern for the health of citizens and expatriates. "The Saudi leadership has given Saudi women ample opportunities to prove themselves and their worth in various fields in which they are excelling and are eventually becoming victorious. I also thank my family, who are very supportive and helpful to me," she said. Hasna affirmed: "It is enough for me to be proud that I have represented Saudi women and women health practitioners who are capable of scoring remarkable achievements and outstanding performances. Through this, they have conveyed to the world that they are supportive of their society." According to Hasna, there are thousands of citizens who brought their fathers and mothers to take coronavirus vaccine doses, and these are the most beautiful pictures of righteousness, altruism, and respect for parents, and this is what we have seen during the period of continuous work in the field hospital, where work of giving vaccines continues uninterruptedly. Hasna said that the non-stop work is underway for the fourth day since the start of the vaccination campaign amid the feelings of happiness being experienced by the medical staff and the practitioners, who are administering vaccine shots to the elderly people as part of the first phase.
