A grandmother, 107, her daughter, 90, and granddaughter, 66, have all received the COVID-19 jab on the same day.
Francisca Candida de Paula, Amelia Candida de Jesus, and Francisca Pinheiro were all vaccinated in the neighbourhood of Terra das Paineiras in the Brazilian municipality of Fernandopolis on 9th February.
The trio received their first doses of the CoronaVac vaccine, developed by the Chinese biopharmaceutical company Sinovac in partnership with Brazil’s Instituto Butantan.
Pinheiro, 66, told local media: “It was a really special day for us. We were very happy. These months have been difficult because of the pandemic.
“I only leave home to go to the market and to sort out some things, but I’m scared of bringing the disease home.”
Paula, 107, was the first to receive the jab, followed by her daughter, Jesus, 90.
The municipality’s health authorities are currently vaccinating the over-90s, so Pinheiro would not normally have received the vaccine at this early stage due to her younger age.
However, given her job as a carer for the elderly, she was also entitled to the jab.
Fernandopolis residents are typically required to present themselves at a local medical centre to be vaccinated. However, the authorities are giving the bed-bound their jabs at home.
Pinheiro told local media: “I care for my mother and grandmother. My mother is lucid, she chats and walks. However, my grandmother is bed-bound. She has been losing her eyesight over the years and she can’t walk anymore, either.
“I was glad I could also be vaccinated. Both of them have experienced many things over the years. They no longer deserve to go through difficult moments.”
The family was relieved to get their jabs as the pandemic had forced them to stop receiving visitors.
Pinheiro told local media: “I do everything I can to take care of both of them. It’s a way of giving back what they did for me.
“Thank God none of us has been infected by the disease so far. I hope it continues this way.”
A new shipment of CoronaVac vaccines is due to arrive in Fernandopolis next week, and is destined for local health professionals so they can receive their second dose.
The vaccination of 85- to 89-year-olds in the municipality is scheduled to begin on 15th February.
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