Sandra Lindsey, first to receive a COVID vaccine in the US, travels to Jamaica on a new mission

February marks Black History Month, a time to pay tribute to those blacks and Afro-Latinos who have trespassed and continue to make history.

Long Island intensive care nurse Sandra Lindsey went national when she received her first official dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in December 2020 in the US. Three years later, she returned to her homeland, Jamaica, to continue her missionary work.

Since the first shot, Lindsey has been fulfilling her new leadership role as Vice President of Public Health Protection at Northwell Health, monitoring the spread of the coronavirus and ensuring proper health care in high-risk areas, including overseas.

In partnership with non-profit medical supply organization MedShare, Northwell donated over $800,000 worth of medical equipment to Jamaica in 2021, with Lindsay assisting in the transfer. In January of this year, Lindsey went to Kingston to actually undergo surgery.

“Jamaica has also asked for help with backlog of COVID-related transactions. People couldn’t get medical care and schedule surgeries because of the pandemic,” Lindsey told NBC New York, who has treated more than a dozen gynecological cases delayed by two. years.

In addition to her work at the University Hospital of the West Indies, Lindsey has been involved in educational and community activities in the surrounding rural areas. She even donated vital equipment courtesy of Northwell to Noel Holmes Hospital on the western side of the island.

Lindsey was honored to give back to her native land and fondly remembers her time there, especially her grandmother, who was a great inspiration. Lindsey moved to New York in 1986 at the age of 18 with her mother and siblings, never forgetting her dream of becoming a nurse.

“That was not easy. Culture shock, moving from Jamaica to the Bronx, apartment buildings. In winter, coming from a tropical country in the cold, I had to work to send myself to school, ”said Lindsey.

At the time, she worked odd jobs at supermarkets and convenience stores for a minimum wage that was less than $4. Lindsey earned her nursing degree from Manhattan County Community College as a single mother and nurse.

The nurse has since risen through the ranks, last year being awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Biden for her work on the front lines of the pandemic.

“At that moment, I felt very proud and grateful. I also thought about what it would mean and what it would mean for the groups that I identify with. What will this mean for women, black women, immigrants, Jamaicans, West Indians, healthcare workers, nurses. ”, Lindsey recalled, stating that the honor is shared with all named groups.