HONOLULU (KHON2) –The state says these surveys and focus groups they’ve been doing since last year have helped the state with its educational campaign.
In the latest survey it did showed that vaccination rates increase with age.
Among those who were surveyed, the state says “young adults under the age of 35 were the least likely to have been vaccinated at 55% while 92% of seniors say they’ve been vaccinated.”
KHON2 learned that older folks tend to view the pandemic in terms of its health impacts.
“When we start to look younger, we noticed that not so many people have been vaccinated just yet,” said Bronwyn Sinclair-White, State Health Department Public Health Marketing and Communications. “Of course that has to do with our distribution plan and our vaccination plan, but they also feel that they are more impacted economically by this pandemic. Those folks that we’ve noted in these surveys have lower vaccination rates.”
Officials also looked at major ethnic groups.
The state says Japanese and Caucasian residents were more likely to be fully vaccinated than Native Hawaiians and Filipinos.
Moving forward, one area of focus will be on education.
“We are now going to be re-educating people on vaccines in general because that so far has not been been front in center neither in our research nor in our campaigns,” said Sinclair-White. “That’s the direction that we are trending forward.”
The state also has a map that details by zip code the percentage of people vaccinated in that area. For example, on Oahu it shows Hauula with at least 70% of people having received a single dose.
Over on the West Side, Waianae and Kapolei report 35% to 45% initiated.
“So having that map and having that data public and shared gives us sort of a common operating picture that we can share with all of our partners,” said Chris Johnson, DOH COVID-19 Community Outreach and Education. “I think what we are starting to see is that it has helped with our efficiency.”
