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TGH nurse first in Tampa Bay to get coronavirus vaccine

Vanessa Arroyo, a registered nurse at Tampa General Hospital, said she felt it was right to get the shot to continue caring for the community.

TAMPA, Fla. — A nurse at Tampa General Hospital was the first in Tampa Bay to get the coronavirus vaccine. 

Vanessa Arroyo is a registered nurse in the Medical ICU. She has been on the frontlines since the beginning of this pandemic. She says this will help stop community spread. 

Arroyo says when she heard there was an opportunity to get it, she immediately volunteered. She says in the last nine months she's witnessed challenges, despair and grief. She said they didn't know who would come into the ICU and who would walk out. 

She said it would be heartbreaking to go through a surge like that again. 

"We've been in the front line throughout this whole pandemic, we cared for the first COVID positive patient at Tampa General, so I felt like it was right for one of our own to receive this vaccine so we can continue helping the community," Arroyo said.

Arroyo said she feels fine after getting the vaccine. And now she's encouraging all of us to get the vaccine to do what's best for the community as a whole. 

You can watch the entire interview here:

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