Health Care

Officials at Queen’s Health Systems have declared an internal state of emergency for its flagship hospital on Punchbowl Street in Honolulu due to rising numbers of patients and staffing shortages.

Local officials have urged residents to get a COVID booster shot, but the state says fewer than half the people eligible have gotten one. States like Vermont have administered booster doses to more than half of their populations. HPR’s Zoe Dym talks with health care workers from Hawaiʻi and Vermont to see how the state can catch up.

To help navigate new COVID-19 drugs, The Conversation spoke with Kaiser’s infectious disease specialist Dr. Tarquin Collins. He walked us through four drugs, starting with Paxlovid.

As of Wednesday, Jan. 12, visitors will not be allowed at Kaiser Permanente’s Moanalua Medical Center except under certain situations.

Workplace drug tests have shown consistent results for the past three years despite massive layoffs and remote working. The Diagnostic Laboratory Services compared marijuana, amphetamine, cocaine, and opiate rates from 2019 through 2021.

The Queen’s Medical Center West Oʻahu is under an internal state of emergency. The health system said the hospital is not shut down, and residents should still go there in case of an emergency.

A new savings program is being hailed as a game changer for those with disabilities. It allows individuals, and their families, to save more money without jeopardizing their disability benefits. HPR's Casey Harlow has more.

The Omicron variant has definitely complicated the travel and hospitality industry — not only here in Hawaiʻi, but around the world. One country in the Asia Pacific is developing a different kind of tourism with a famous American partner. HPR’s Bill Dorman has more.

With COVID-19 new case counts exceeding 1,000 on Oʻahu, two of The Queen's Medical Center’s biggest hospitals are reinstating a no visitor policy. The policy will be in effect for an indefinite amount of time until case counts decrease.

With local medical facilities preparing for an influx of COVID patients, the Healthcare Association of Hawaii says it's in good shape in terms of oxygen supply, personal protective equipment and other supplies. But the association does expect to need additional health care workers.