Healthcare in Hawaii
Myra Williams, right, and her husband Rick look out over the Kawainui Marsh, not far from their home in Kailua, Hawaii. Williams was successfully treated recently for early stage breast cancer. Williams said Hawaiians believe “if you are sick, you go to the doctor. It’s just part of the culture.” (Christina House / For The Times)
The Waialua Sugar Mill in Waialua, Hawaii, on the island of Oahu. (Christina House / For The Times)
Dr. Clayton Chong, a senior oncologist, works around stacks of paperwork on his desk at the Queen’s Medical Center in Honolulu. (Christina House / For The Times)
Ramona Engoring, left, sees Dr. Randall Suzuka for a checkup at Haleiwa Family Clinic in Haleiwa, Hawaii, in a rural area of Oahu once covered with sugar cane plantations. Suzuka took over a former plantation doctor’s practice. (Christina House / For The Times)
Meli Watanuki of Kalaupapa, Hawaii, is examined by Dr. Clayton Chong during a follow-up visit after her cancer surgery at Queen’s Medical Center. (Christina House / For The Times)
Dr. Randall Suzuka returns phone calls at the end of the day at Haleiwa Family Clinic in Haleiwa, Hawaii. Because health insurance coverage is almost universal in Hawaii, Suzuka says he rarely needs to discuss skipping care with a patient just because the person doesn’t have adequate insurance. (Christina House / For The Times)
Myra Williams, a breast cancer survivor, demonstrates a yoga pose behind her home in Kailua, Hawaii. Williams, 64, has lived in Hawaii for 35 years. (Christina House / For The Times)
Dr. Randall Suzuka performs an outpatient surgical procedure on Zumira Nishimura’s ear at Haleiwa Family Clinic in Haleiwa, Hawaii. (Christina House / For The Times)
Jul Lynn Parsons of Punalu’u, Hawaii, is examined by Dr. Clayton Chong during a consultation for her ongoing chemotherapy treatment at the Queen’s Medical Center cancer center in Honolulu. (Christina House / For The Times)
