Glimmer of hope on mauna

This is, without a doubt, a very limited accord. But it says something about the tense Thirty Meter Telescope conflict that even this glimmer of peace has to be greeted with relief.

Hawaii County Mayor Harry Kim has reached an agreement with the protesters encamped at the base of Mauna Kea: They would clear the Mauna Kea Access Road in exchange for a commitment that no construction would occur for the next two months.

The entire base camp would not be abandoned, to be sure, but at the very least the structures built across the public road leading to the observatory campus would be dismantled, the kia‘i (“protectors”) moved to the side. The group that has occupied the area spanning the road are generally the kupuna, the elders of the movement. But people of any age surely can’t find the wintry weather very comfortable, so now comes some respite.

But the rhetoric still reflects that of a standoff. Noe Noe Wong-Wilson, a protest leader, said in a news conference that this is simply a placeholder and that the resistance is still firm.

“We are winning this, guys,” Wong-Wilson said in a news conference. “We are winning this.”

The employees who report to work at the summit’s existing telescopes can take a breather, with the access road being cleared so they can get through via the normal route.

What won’t be clear from now through February is how the TMT leadership sees this. Mauna Kea remains the best site for astronomy, by far — but the Canary Islands fallback location is still at the ready.

Tough times for doctors

When it comes to Hawaii’s doctor shortage, there was scant good news in the recent Hawaii Physician Workforce Assessment Project report, just submitted to the state Legislature.

More than 150 doctors left Hawaii this year, another 91 retired and 123 reduced their work hours — all totaling to an 8% reduction of the physician workforce. This leaves our isles with the equivalent of just 2,974 doctors, while the demand is close to 3,522.

Many reasons factor into the exodus from Hawaii, such as the high cost of living, lower than average pay, spouses’ job prospects and dissatisfaction with the medical community.

That last aspect seems to be a growing one this year, with changes in health insurance reimbursements and a couple of prominent employers making controversial headlines.

At the end of August, The Queen’s Medical Center released a dozen of local doctors, opting instead to contract with a mainland-based group of hospitalists. And about a month ago, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii’s CEO raised concerns in a memo to staffers, warning of unsustainability and the “need to fundamentally rethink how we deliver medical care.”

Such dire workings are unsettling for consumers, let alone the physicians and staffers who must navigate such operations.

Still, the new physician-workforce report did note some positives: The easing of Hawaii’s severe cardiologist shortage, with heart specialists being trained via a fellowship created by the University of Hawaii medical school; the Hawaii Island Family Medicine Residency program also has added to the pool of family-medicine doctors.

These are green shoots well worth nurturing — especially since Hawaii’s aging population will likely need more, not fewer, doctors in the near future.

Zoo responds to criticism

The city’s recent release of a stinging audit of the Honolulu Zoo had a touch of deja vu.

It seemed to mostly confirm concerns raised back in March 2016 when the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), the nonprofit accrediting organization for facilities across the country and internationally, stripped the attraction’s accreditation.

The city auditor’s report asserted that the zoo continues to be plagued by an ineffective relationship with the Honolulu Zoological Society, as well as operational deficiencies and staff shortages that have led to unnecessary overtime costs. However, Mayor Kirk Caldwell called most of those findings outdated — a sort of “snapshot taken about two years ago,” when the zoo was struggling to regain its operational footing.

Critical to recovery was a City Charter amendment approved by voters in November 2016. It requires at least 0.5% of annual real property taxes go into a special zoo fund to help win back accreditation.

While the sort of institutional performance described in the city audit is unacceptable, what is acceptable — laudable, even — is that due to recent years of stability, regaining AZA’s stamp of approval now appears to be within reach.

In September, zoo officials submitted an application for accreditation, which could bring a decision in 2020, following site inspection that will scrutinize everything from animal welfare and well-being, to safety for visitors and staff, as well as educational and conservation programs, and financial strength. Let’s hope operations have indeed improved.