The NHS nurse who delivered the world’s first Covid-19 jab has called on families not to forget how lifesaving vaccines can be.

Five years ago today May Parsons administered the first vaccine outside of clinical trials to Maggie Keenan. Back then at the height of the pandemic vaccines saved the country from perpetual lockdowns and there was a clamour for everyone to get one.

Since then vaccine uptake for Covid-19 and flu has plummeted and May is speaking out to urge people not to get “complacent” with their lives. It comes as Britain is braced for its worst flu season on record. May described how she has seen patients on their deathbeds wishing they had taken up the offer of a vaccine when it was too late.

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May told the Mirror : “People are being complacent. They are dismissing the symptoms as just ‘natural’ but if you are unlucky enough to be frail it is dangerous.

“Even if you’re a generally healthy person when you get the flu, if you get the real thing, you will be so ill you won’t be able to lift a finger. Until you get those symptoms it’s hard to imagine the impact flu can have on your physiology.

“If people are unlucky they suffer with breathing problems… and that’s when there can be increased risk of cardiac arrest. Will you want to be taking that lottery and risking your life?”

May was a matron at University Hospital Coventry when she administered the first approved Covid-19 vaccine on 8 December 2020 as cameras flashed and images of her were beamed around the world. It came during a global race to develop and manufacture Covid-19 vaccines. She describes being asked to administer the jab that day as an “extraordinary privilege”.

The 45-year-old, who has worked in the NHS for over 20 years, said: “I only found out that the vaccination was going to be the first in the world on the day itself. I was nervous because there were a lot of cameras out there. I just relied on the muscle memory of my training as a nurse because it was something I did on a daily basis.

“In that moment during the second wave of the pandemic, which was the hardest time, we felt like it was opening a door of hope not just to millions of people in the UK, but to billions of people around the world.”

Flu vaccine uptake among over-65s in 2020/21 at the height of the pandemic was 82.3%. Since then annual data shows it has fallen every year and it dropped to 74.9% in 2024/25 - just below the World Health Organisation’s minimum target of 75%

For younger age groups uptake is generally worse with 42.6% coverage in two and three year olds last year and only 35% of pregnant women getting the flu jab.

During the pandemic well over 90% of people aged over 75 took up the offer of a Covid-19 jab. Last data for so far this year shows just 61.6% of over-75s and 28.2% of eligible under-75s with a weakened immune system have had the Covid jab.

May, a mum-of-two, said: “During the pandemic I heard a lot of patients on the brink of death wishing that they had the vaccine and we couldn't do anything.

“The amount of disinformation out there is causing so much harm to people. It's really hard to get people to understand the impact of flu until they've seen it.

“It's really heartbreaking when you hear people saying ‘I wish I had the vaccine’ and it's too late for them… it's soul crushing.”

NHS England is keen to point out it is easier to get vaccinated now than at the height of the pandemic with flu vaccine nasal sprays available from pharmacies. Patients can book a vaccine on the NHS App and get the flu and Covid jab during the same appointment.

Latest data for this winter shows 17 million flu jabs have been administered - which is 350,000 more than at the same point last year.

Duncan Burton, Chief Nursing Officer for England said: “While it’s been five years since the NHS delivered the historic first Covid vaccination, the importance of getting jabbed is just as important today as it was then.

“With respiratory viruses spiralling – with thousands of flu sufferers set to end up in hospital in the coming weeks - now is the time to act and protect yourself. If the pandemic taught us anything, it’s that vaccines save lives.”

May now works as a nursing director at a social care provider in Buckinghamshire. She added: “I think the pandemic showed that when we are struggling as a community, if we put our efforts together… how connected the human race is when we face a challenge so profound.

“I just had my Covid and flu jabs about two weeks ago. In social care I’m dealing with a lot of elderly, frail residents who have pre-existing conditions and the impact on their health [of an infection] is tremendous. In some cases when they get the flu, they get pneumonia and then die.

“I would strongly recommend people protecting themselves and their loved ones.”

Flu vaccines are available for everyone aged 65 and over, under 65s in clinical risk groups, pregnant women, care home residents and carers, close contacts of those who are immunosuppressed, frontline social care workers, and health and social care staff as well as children.

Covid-19 vaccinations are available to adults aged 75 and over, older adult care home residents, and people who are immunosuppressed.

Eligible adults can book an appointment to get their flu vaccine now via at their local pharmacy via the NHS App, GP practice, online at www.nhs.uk/bookflu or by calling 119.