SARANAC LAKE — The room was far from quiet.

Inside the in-house vaccination clinic at Adirondack Medical Center, a group of health care workers, wearing masks and other personal protective equipment, joked and poked fun at one another as they waited for a delivery they’d anticipated for months.

The first batch of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines arrived at Adirondack Medical Center on Wednesday afternoon. Some staff at the hospital had already been vaccinated elsewhere, but this shipment was the first to be delivered directly to the Saranac Lake hospital.

As the first of about 60 AMC staff to be vaccinated that day sat down, arms bared, the atmosphere was celebratory. The coronavirus continues to spread, but for some people on the front lines of the fight against COVID-19, this moment was a bright spot. Environmental Tech James Rochelle was the first to be vaccinated in-house at AMC, followed by Physician’s Assistant Julie Loving.

Loving, 35, of Saranac, has been working in the Emergency Room at AMC throughout the pandemic. She’s also 33 weeks pregnant.

Asked what it’s been like to come into work every day knowing there’s a risk of exposure to the coronavirus, Loving said it has been nervewracking.

“That’s been really nervewracking, especially when I’m pregnant. The (U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) has said that pregnant individuals have a two-times increased risk of death and a four-times increased risk of ending up in the ICU with severe illness,” she said. “So that’s been really nervewracking for both me and my husband and my family. The fact that I’m able to get the vaccine… I definitely feel a lot better about that.”

What kept her going throughout the last couple of months has been her love of the job, and her love of taking care of others, she said.

“Somebody has to take care of these people, and I feel privileged to do that,” Loving said.

Information about the vaccine in relation to pregnant women is currently very limited — but after talking to her obstetrician and doing some research, Loving decided to get vaccinated. Adirondack Health Assistant Vice President of Patient Care Services Carrie Reardon administered her first of two doses of the Pfizer vaccine on Wednesday.

“From the research that I’ve done, and with my OB, it seems that the vaccine is really pretty safe, and I feel good about it,” Loving said.

Loving is one of about 89,000 New Yorkers who have been administered their first dose of a coronavirus vaccine as of Wednesday, according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office.

Under the state’s vaccine distribution plan, essential health care workers and high-risk nursing home residents are the first to be eligible for coronavirus vaccines.

Next to be vaccinated will be first responders; teachers, school staff and child care providers; public health workers; high-risk people and essential front line workers who have regular contact with the public. Then vaccinations will open up to everyone over the age of 65 and those under the age of 65 with underlying conditions, then all other essential workers, then the general population, according to the state’s COVID vaccination program book. In New York, the general population likely won’t be eligible for vaccination until late January, according to Cuomo.

Getting vaccinated doesn’t necessarily mean a person is safe from potential exposure to the coronavirus, only that they won’t get sick with COVID-19. That means that even after getting vaccinated, social distancing and mask-wearing will still be necessary to help prevent the spread of the virus.

Statewide, 6,864 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 as of Tuesday. Of those, 1,166 people are in intensive care.

As of Wednesday, two COVID-positive patients were hospitalized at AMC, according to Adirondack Health spokesman Matt Scollin.

The Essex County Health Department reported 68 active cases of COVID-19 countywide on Wednesday. Franklin County Public Health reported 143 active cases.

Across the state, 164 people died on Tuesday after contracting COVID-19.