The first time she used an antibiotic was after a colleague in Edmonton sent her a small vial containing crystals of penicillin for a Christmas gift. She wondered if this new drug was as good as everyone said it was, and whether it was safe. She decided she would give some of it to the next person who was so sick that she was sure that person would die, having no more she could do for that person. This proved to be a little native girl with pneumonia, whom Jackson believed would not live through the night. She mixed the penicillin and gave a small amount to the girl her every three hours until she was better. The child markedly improved with every hour after beginning the injections of penicillin, and went home completely well. Jackson, many years later, expressed her view with certainty that the child would have died that night without penicillin.