WCCB Charlotte's CW First Person to Get COVID Vaccine in NC says it’s Less Painful than a Flu Shot December 14, 2020 The first vaccine administered in the state was given to a doctor at Carolinas Medical Center. “It was less painful than the flu shot I got this year. I have no bruising. I didn’t bleed at all,” explains Dr. Katie Passaretti, an infectious disease specialist at Atrium Health. She got her first dose shortly after the Pfizer vaccine arrived at Carolinas Medical Center on Monday morning. “I have minimal pain, kind of in the muscle. It’s really, I feel blessed that it was such a good experience,” she explains.