News

Wailuku, Maui, HI (January 13, 2022) – As Maui County continues to experience an increase in the COVID-19 positivity rate which is now the highest in the state at 22.5%, Maui Memorial Medical Center (MMMC) is also caring for more COVID-19 patients. For perspective – just one month ago, MMMC was caring for four COVID-19 patients, all unvaccinated. Today, we are caring for 28 COVID-19 patients, 15 are fully vaccinated and two of those individuals received a booster dose. Important to note, the boosted individuals are not at the hospital for COVID-19 and were admitted for other medical reasons. Their COVID-19 status was discovered upon routine testing of all inpatients upon admission.

MMMC census is quite busy with non-COVID-19 admissions and emergency department visits as well. This is typical for this time of year, but emergency department volumes have increased to pre-pandemic levels with an influx of individuals with COVID-19 concerns. Staffing has been impacted as well. As Maui residents, employees are also contracting the virus circulating throughout the community and remain isolated at home. FEMA nurses should be arriving next week and more the following week to offer relief staffing, just as in past surges. We are unsure how many relief nurses we will receive but are grateful for any number to assist with staffing.

While our daily numbers are high for Maui County, the seven-day average has decreased slightly. However, the county continues to trend upward. Dr. Michael Shea, chief medical director for Maui Health and co-lead for our Emergency Operations Center team said, “I do not believe Maui County’s COVID-19 numbers have peaked. Based on the experiences we are watching throughout the world – South Africa, the UK, and areas on the mainland – where the surges began before Hawaii, we are at least a few weeks from our peak. However, this peak timing will ultimately depend on what precautions our community takes to prevent spread.”

The COVID-19 vaccine is still the best protection against contracting the virus. If you have not been vaccinated, please reconsider. If you have been fully vaccinated, please get your booster dose.

The Maui Memorial Medical Center, Main Lobby Vaccine Clinic continues to provide Pfizer vaccine to all eligible residents:

• Open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 12 noon and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
• No appointment needed; walk-ins are welcome during clinic hours.
• Administering first, second, third and booster doses to all qualified individuals.
• To qualify for a booster dose, you must be at least 12 years old or older and five months past your second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, or two months past your single dose of Johnson & Johnson.
• Pediatric dose available for ages 5 to 11.
• Children under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.

For more information on how to receive the vaccine, please visit www.mauihealth.org/covidvaccine.

###

About Maui Health
Maui Health, aka Maui Health System, community hospitals and associated clinics affiliated with Kaiser Permanente, includes Maui Memorial Medical Center, Kula Hospital, Lanai Community Hospital and associated clinics, and serves the people of Maui and Lanai. The facilities under Maui Health employ nearly 1700 Maui County residents, partner with over 450 hospital-based physicians, clinicians, and community-based primary and specialty physicians, and are open to all patients regardless of health insurance coverage. Maui Health is committed to delivering high quality, affordable, patient-centered health care and improving the health of the community. Maui Health is supported by Kaiser Permanente’s industry-leading technology systems, evidence-based medicine and nationally recognized care quality. For more information, visit mauihealth.org.