Hawaii and the nation has been making a concerted push to meet President Joe Biden’s COVID-19 vaccination goals, and to get young adults and those who are still hesitant to get their shots.
Against this backdrop, the high rate of vaccinations among the staff and residents of Hawaii’s skilled-nursing and assisted-living facilities stands out as an example of why vaccination is important, and gives guidance as to how it can be achieved.
The vaccination surveys by the Healthcare Association of Hawaii (HAH), the trade association for the long-term care facilities, show that across all islands the employees of skilled nursing and assisted living care settings have been vaccinated at dramatically higher numbers than their mainland counterparts — nearly 35 percentage points higher.
HAH’s second statewide survey of its long-term care member facilities, conducted in April, reveals that an impressive 84% of the workforce is fully vaccinated. This is in contrast to the national average of approximately 50% of employees in long-term care settings, according to a report published by the Center for Public Integrity and National Public Radio (NPR).
Hawaii has the fifth-lowest rate of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in the nation according to estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Also, Hawaii nursing homes lead the nation with the highest rate of staff COVID-19 vaccinations, according to the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services data released for the week ending June 6.
Some facilities managed to get 100% of their staff and residents vaccinated. These mission-critical front-line employees hold the safety of our most frail and elderly populations in their hands. They bear outsized responsibility in the fight against COVID-19 because of those who live at their facilities. Among those residents, approximately 92% of them are fully vaccinated.
This important news is a reason to stop and recognize Hawaii’s highly committed healthcare workforce and its leadership, particularly after such a challenging year. These individuals have been quietly working behind the scenes to get vaccinated and safely reunite residents with their loved ones.
National data show that rates of COVID-19 related disease and death in long term care settings plummeted after the vaccinations were rolled out, starting in December 2020.
For many of our long-term care employees, getting vaccinated was not so much about themselves, but for those under their care. We point to Hawaii’s unique family-focused culture and close-knit community for these results.
Many of those who responded to the HAH survey said that being well informed by their employers and physicians seemed to be the most effective approach in discussing COVID-19 vaccinations. Hawaii’s skilled nursing and assisted living care settings held several one-to-one conversations to answer questions, provide education, and assist employees in signing up. Materials were provided in various languages.
Many organizations gave employees a choice of which vaccine to receive — Pfizer, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson. Some held town hall style meetings, and medical director meetings that included staff, residents and their families. Straightforward discussions with physicians, Q&A information and direct “talk story” sessions also helped empower employees to make their own decisions. Staff worked hard to get consent forms signed by residents, and their legal guardians.
As Hawaii turns a corner from its darkest days of COVID-19, we know this effort is far from over. We know that variants remain a threat and that outbreaks can take hold if we let our guard down.
At the same time, we ask Hawaii to pause for a moment and acknowledge the individuals who make up Hawaii’s healthcare workforce. Because they are doing their part, our kupuna are better protected. And if all do our part, our keiki and young adults can be better protected, too.
Hilton Raethel is CEO of the Healthcare Association of Hawaii; Tricia Medeiros is chief operating officer of The Plaza Assisted Living; Wes Lo is CEO of Ohana Pacific Health.
