Cash McGinley Haley L, Hancock W Thane, Kern-Allely Stephanie, Jenssen Melissa, Chutaro Emi, Camacho Janet, Judicpa Pedro, Okumura Kazuhiro, Muñoz Nick, Ademokun Oluwatomiloba M, Brostrom Richard
Pacific Island Health Officers' Association, Honolulu, Hawai'i, United States of America.
Career Epidemiology Field Officer Program, Division of State and Local Readiness, Office of Readiness and Response, United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Hagåtña, Guam.
PLOS Glob Public Health. 2023 Aug 16;3(8):e0002052. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0002052. eCollection 2023.
The US-Affiliated Pacific Islands (USAPIs) experience many health disparities, including high rates of non-communicable disease and limited health resources, making them particularly vulnerable when SARS-CoV-2 began circulating globally in early 2020. Therefore, many USAPIs closed their borders early during the COVID-19 pandemic to give them more time to prepare for community transmission. Routine virtual meetings were established and maintained throughout the pandemic to support preparedness and response efforts and to share information among USAPIs and support partners. Data collected from these regular virtual meetings were gathered and disseminated through routine regional situational reports. These situational reports from March 27, 2020 to November 25, 2022 were reviewed to develop a quantitative dataset with qualitative notes that were used to summarize the COVID-19 response in the USAPIs. The initial surges of COVID-19 in the USAPIs ranged from August 2020 in Guam to August 2022 in the Federated States of Micronesia. This prolonged time between initial surges in the region was due to varying approaches regarding travel requirements, including fully closed borders, repatriation efforts requiring pre-travel quarantine and testing, quarantine requirements upon arrival only, and vaccine mandates. Delaying community transmission allowed USAPIs to establish testing capacity, immunize large proportions of their populations, and use novel COVID-19 therapeutics to reduce severe disease and mortality. Other essential components to support the USAPI regional COVID-19 response efforts included strong partnership and collaboration, regional information sharing and communication efforts, and trust in health leadership among community members. Valuable lessons learned from the USAPIs during the COVID-19 pandemic can be used to continue to strengthen systems within the region and better prepare for future public health emergencies.
美属太平洋岛屿（USAPIs）存在诸多健康差异，包括非传染性疾病发病率高和卫生资源有限，这使得它们在2020年初新冠病毒开始在全球传播时格外脆弱。因此，许多美属太平洋岛屿在新冠疫情期间早早关闭了边境，以便有更多时间为社区传播做准备。在整个疫情期间都建立并维持了常规虚拟会议，以支持防范和应对工作，并在美属太平洋岛屿及支持伙伴之间共享信息。从这些定期虚拟会议收集的数据通过常规区域形势报告进行汇总和传播。对2020年3月27日至2022年11月25日的这些形势报告进行了审查，以建立一个包含定性说明的定量数据集，用于总结美属太平洋岛屿对新冠疫情的应对情况。美属太平洋岛屿新冠疫情的最初激增时间从2020年8月的关岛到2022年8月的密克罗尼西亚联邦不等。该地区最初激增之间的这段延长时间是由于旅行要求的不同做法造成的，包括完全关闭边境、要求旅行前检疫和检测的遣返工作、仅在抵达时的检疫要求以及疫苗强制规定。推迟社区传播使美属太平洋岛屿能够建立检测能力、为很大比例的人口接种疫苗，并使用新型新冠治疗方法来降低重症和死亡率。支持美属太平洋岛屿地区新冠疫情应对工作的其他重要组成部分包括强有力的伙伴关系与合作、区域信息共享和沟通努力，以及社区成员对卫生领导的信任。在新冠疫情期间从美属太平洋岛屿吸取的宝贵经验教训可用于继续加强该地区的系统，并更好地为未来的公共卫生紧急情况做准备。
