LIHU‘E — Emergency preparedness and COVID-19 concerns have significantly declined in Kaua‘i households this year, according to a recent door-to-door survey completed by the state Department of Health Kaua‘i District Health Office.
A total of 180 households were randomly selected to be interviewed for the survey, which was conducted earlier this month using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CASPER methodology. CASPER, which stands for Community Assessment for Public Health Emergency Response, allows public health officials to obtain household-level data on the health and resource needs of a community.
The 2023 survey is the sixth CASPER survey conducted on Kaua‘i since 2017, and includes an assessment of Kaua‘i households’ emergency preparedness and evacuation plans; COVID-19 impacts and vaccine status; awareness of local tobacco laws and cessation resources; and general questions about life on Kaua‘i.
Lauren Guest, the deputy district health officer with the Kaua‘i District Health Office, was the report’s lead author and organizer of the assessment’s operation. From June 6 to June 9, she oversaw the staff of 27 teams, totaling 45 people, as they collected the data.
“I think one of the things that stood out for me this year is some of the losses we’ve seen in preparedness levels over the pandemic,” said Guest in an interview with The Garden Island on Wednesday.
“In particular, the decline in water preparedness for three, seven, and 14 days in Kaua‘i households,” she noted.
The report, which assumed 1 gallon of water per person per day, found that 55 percent of Kaua‘i households had enough water for three days, 31 percent had enough for seven days, and 14 percent had enough water for 14 days.
The data was compared to results from previous years, which showed a slight increase in water supply from 2017 to 2019 across all three different time ranges. The increase was followed by a slight decline in 2022 and a further decline in 2023.
“I guess (the decline is) not surprising considering all the other challenges that households have been facing and what they’ve been focused on over the last three years, which is not necessarily emergency preparedness,” said Guest, referring to potential impacts caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the report, only 13 percent of Kaua‘i households met the Hawai‘i Emergency Management Agency’s recommendation to have a 14-day supply of both food and water.
The data also compared current and pre-pandemic household incomes. The data showed over 50 percent of households were making about the same amount of money, and 23 percent of households
reported a decline in income.
“A lot of our households have returned to kind of their pre-pandemic state, but some households are still struggling, and that emphasizes the importance of continuing to link households to the services and programs that are still available at the local and national level,” Guest said.
The assessment also found a decline in concerns about COVID-19 on Kaua‘i. The report states 44 percent of households reported being unconcerned about getting sick with COVID-19 in June 2023, compared with 27 percent in 2020.
It also found 18 percent of households currently believe it’s “very important to wear a mask indoors in places other than their home,” compared with 47 percent in 2023. Additionally, 53 percent of households said they were up to date on all of their COVID-19 vaccines, but nearly 20 percent of households reported receiving zero COVID-19 vaccinations.
The 180 households were also asked to identify challenges surrounding their life on Kaua‘i. A total of 28 percent reported no challenges, but the top challenge for the remaining households was housing, followed by medical care, food and employment.
Kaua‘i is the only island to partake in the survey, but Guest hopes that the assessment will eventually expand across the state and help inform efforts to meet residents’ needs through additional education and community outreach.
“We had some O‘ahu colleagues support us in the efforts this year, which we hope to mean that we’re going to continue to build this capability statewide so that it can be performed on other islands,” Guest said.
The full report can be viewed at https://health.hawaii.gov/kauai/files/2023/06/Kauai-2023-CASPER-Final-Report.pdf.
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Emma Grunwald, reporter, can be reached 808-652-0638 or egrunwald@thegardenisland.com.
