When the pandemic broke out,
Kawailehua Paikai was concerned because it restricted students like herself from traveling. The biggest way it affected her studies was in keeping students from traveling and shifting health care delivery to telehealth.
Kawailehua Paikai
“I was lucky enough to have finished spring clinicals before COVID started,” Paikai explained. “The clinicals for summer were pushed to fall and by then most places had shifted to adding telehealth to their practices. Without the pandemic, we probably would not have had as much experience doing telehealth visits.”
As a Kānaka maoli (Native Hawaiian), Paikai is passionate about Native Hawaiians having access to healthcare. She is currently a case manager at Queen’s Medical Center and sees firsthand some of the issues the Pacific Islander community faces. She has investigated the perception and experience of Native Hawaiians accessing health care during COVID-19, noting that Native Hawaiians are usually unde