A Toronto Health Care Worker Named Anita Just Got Ontario's First COVID-19 Vaccine

A Toronto health care worker received Ontario's first dose of Canada's COVID-19 vaccine this morning.

The first dose of the province went to a woman named Anita Quidangen, according to a statement released by the Ontario government on Monday.*

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Anita has spent years rolling up her sleeves to protect our province, and today, she didn't hesitate to find a new way to do so. Doug Ford

Quidangen is a Personal Support Worker at the Rekai Centre, a long-term care home in Toronto, and her dose marks a major milestone in the country's fight against COVID-19.

"Over 2,500 health care workers in our hospitals and long-term care homes will be vaccinated over the coming days and weeks, with more people to follow as additional shipments arrive," Ford said in a statement.

Ford called Quidangen and her colleagues "frontline health-care heroes" in his statement, but also urged those waiting for a vaccine to remain patient and keep following public health orders.

"This is a watershed moment - the beginning of the end of this terrible pandemic. The light at the end of the tunnel grows brighter every day, but we must remain on our guard," Ford said.

Front-line workers in Toronto and Ottawa are expected to receive the province's first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine over the coming days.

*An earlier version of this article, using information provided by the Ontario Government, misstated who the first person in Canada to receive the COVID-19 vaccine was. According to the Government of Quebec, Gisèle Lévesque of Quebec City was the first in Canada, and Anita Quidangen was the first in Ontario.