An Elizabethtown man is collecting data on the health, psychological and financial effects of the coronavirus pandemic in Essex County, using an online COVID-19 study he set up himself to track people’s anxieties, altered livelihoods and adherence to safety precautions.

Brad Else said he is not a professional survey-maker, but he saw a hole in local information-gathering that he believes needs to be filled.

As of Thursday, the questionnaire had received 67 responses from 17 ZIP codes in the county.

Preliminary results show prevalent concerns over contracting the virus, inconsistent application of precautionary measures and harsh financial impacts for a few.

The survey can be found at https://bit.ly/2F27i4l. After completing the survey, one can see up-to-date results.

Else said he plans to stop collecting responses for August on Saturday and is considering conducting another survey for September.

“I’d like to compare one month to the next and pursue a bit more of the “why” of certain behavior in the county,” Else wrote in an email.

He said he hopes his survey outline lays a groundwork for others to take up his cause. He said he welcomes feedback on the survey to improve it.

His results are rough estimates, as he is dealing with a small sample size and is asking questions that have not been tested.

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Worry led to survey

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Else said in July he was bothered to see groups of people not wearing masks at several local businesses and public areas.

“People aren’t learning anything here,” Else said.

At that point, more than 150,000 Americans had died of the coronavirus.

He asked the Essex County Health Department if it could set up a survey to track prevention measure compliance, but he was told the department’s six full-time employees were swamped with tracking positive and potential COVID-19 cases.

“We are asking that our local leaders, business owners, and residents ALL step up and help us in these unprecedented times,” the department told Else in a message. “No one should feel like a helpless observer.”

So Else took it upon himself to conduct a cursory survey addressing some of the big questions around how people are getting through this pandemic.

He based his questions on a survey conducted in Kauai, Hawaii, where his daughter lives.

He said this survey could be replicated for other counties.

The survey responses are anonymous, only asking people’s ZIP codes.

He said his survey was released right around when a breakout at Essex Center nursing home and rehabilitation facility began, which has now killed seven residents and infected 88.

Else said he found it interesting that some people who responded to questions of mask-wearing and social distancing said the followed these practices “usually.”

“Their families,” he said of the dead, “they didn’t need ‘usually.'”

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Results

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Around half of the responders said someone in their home had been tested for the virus, with two people saying results came back positive.

Around 95% reported they were “very” or “somewhat” concerned that they or a member of their household could get sick with COVID-19, with that concern being split about evenly between the two options.

Asked to assess the level of pandemic concern in their household, over half described it as “medium,” and twice as many reported “high” concern than “low” concern.

While most said they wear a mask and socially distance when going out, around a quarter said they take these precautions “sometimes” or “usually.” A handful said they “rarely” wear masks.

Half said they have seen others engaged in “risky behavior” that could lead to the spread of COVID-19 in Essex County “many” times.

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Finances

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Over 26% of respondents reported they had lost their job or income due to the pandemic. Several reported experiencing difficulty in paying for transportation or concern about paying for basic utilities like water, electricity, heating fuel, food, rent or mortgage.

One reported having trouble feeding the household.

While the majority reported that they are confident in their funds and insurance to meet their current medical needs, that number dropped to under half when asked if these could meet their needs if they contracted COVID-19. Most of these respondents were “not sure.”

Around 20% answered that the could not afford both current and potential medical needs.