Over 100 residents in the Hawaiian fishing village of Miloli’i have received the one-dose Johnson and Johnson vaccine.
With such a high number of families reluctant to be vaccinated, health officials hope those who decide to get vaccinated create herd immunity for the sake of all residents’ safety.
“We are getting vaccinated as quickly as possible,” County spokesperson, Cyrus Johnasen said. “We want to remind folks that the threat of COVID-19 is still very real in our county and continuing to follow all social distancing practices, aside from getting the vaccination, is the way that we can keep our communities safe."
The vaccines were administered at a mobile vaccination clinic brought to the old and remote village by the Bay Clinic. According to Johnasen, 120 out of 300, approximately 25% of the South Kona community’s total population have been vaccinated. Considering front-line workers who have also received the vaccine, the administration has helped achieve 80% herd immunity among the community. The Hawaiian island has reported over 2,400 COVID-19 cases since the pandemic was declared.
“I just figured no need because I have the antibodies,” local resident Ka'imi Kaupiko said. “But I just knew that I could get COVID again. So I know the chances of me taking the vaccination will be more likely, I wouldn't get COVID again.”
Bay Clinic’s CEO, Kim Alameda, expressed the lack of technological advancements such as wifi and electricity presented challenges to launch the mobile clinic. The hospital in closest proximity to the island is over an hour away.
“So, you know, we have to take generators, electrical cords, gasoline. We have to take special Wi-Fi equipment to access the internet,” Alameda said. “That means we have to take laptops. We have to kind of replicate a clinic in a halau, in a pavilion, basically.”
Kaupiko believes some residents refused the vaccines out of fear of the unknown side effects, while others are simply unsure and can potentially be convinced to receive the vaccine.
“I think a lot of it is fear. A lot of people believe that because they live here, they don't really go anywhere, they don't need to take the vaccine. Some of them don't believe in vaccinations,” Kaupiko said. “I think once we saw more families sign up and do it, then the rest of the families would come and get the shot and that's kind of what happened.”
According to Alameda, the mobile vaccination establishment can serve as a pioneer for other undeveloped, remote and rural areas in Hawaii.
“Those groups who lack transportation, those groups who lack access to internet, those groups who lack awareness of the COVID vaccine,” Alameda said. “I think we have a special niche to fill the gaps that other health entities are having difficulty filling. And those are gaps that require a different approach to getting the vaccine to the people.”