It was happy hour on COVID shots.
A nurse in Tuscany, Italy redefined “shots on the house” after accidentally giving a patient a staggering six doses of the coronavirus vaccine — in a single shot. The female recipient is fortunately in stable condition following the mishap, CNN reported.
“She [the nurse] saw five empty syringes and realized her mistake,” said Daniella Gianelli, a spokeswoman at the Goa hospital, where the vaccination fiasco occurred. The unnamed 23-year-old patient had reportedly been eligible for a shot before her peers as she worked as an intern at the facility.
Unfortunately, the administering nurse mistakenly filled one syringe with a whole bottle of Pfizer COVID vaccine — which contains six shots — and didn’t realize her mistake until she’d injected the patient. Dr. Tommaso Bellandi, director of patient security for the northwest Tuscany health authority, told CBS that the mishap occurred during a hectic day in which the health-care facility was trying to give out as many vaccines as possible.
The nurse quickly realized her error and notified the patient and the hospital, which subsequently monitored her for approximately 24 hours in the emergency room. During that time, she was administered fluids and fever medications to prevent any potential complications from her “overdose.”
Thankfully, the lucky woman didn’t suffer any side effects aside from being a “bit frightened,” according to Dr. Antonella Vicenti, Noa Hospital’s director of infectious diseases.
“The patient did not have fever and did not have any pain except for pain at the inoculation site, nor any other manifestations,” she said, adding that the fortunate soul’s since been discharged from the hospital.
Thankfully, overdosing on anti-COVID serum isn’t as catastrophic as it sounds. Dr. Vincenti cited Pfizer studies where participants received five times the normal dose without exhibiting any adverse reactions. In a similar case in April, 77 prisoners in Iowa were accidentally administered six COVID shots sans experiencing any major symptoms.
Bellandi has reportedly chalked up the incident to simple “human error.”
“Unfortunately, due to our limits as human beings, as well as organizational limits, these things can happen,” he lamented, adding that he feels “extremely regretful, especially towards the young woman.”
Noa Hospital has since launched an investigation to review the organization’s safety protocol.