How to Keep COVID-19 at Bay: A Taiwanese Perspective
Chih‐Cheng Lai, Muh‐Yong Yen, Ping‐Ing Lee, Po‐Ren Hsueh
Abstract
Coronavirus Disease , caused by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), was first reported in Wuhan, China, in December 2019.COVID-19 spread rapidly across China in the first 2 months of 2020 [1,2].Strategies and tools have been developed and implemented for COVID-19 mitigation in many countries [3,4], with no exception for Taiwan, which is located approximately 100 miles off the coast of southeastern China.Many people frequently travel between Taiwan and China.Therefore, it was predicted that Taiwan will have the second highest number of confirmed COVID-19 cases.However, this disastrous outcome was avoided due to the prompt and significant actions of Taiwanese authorities, including the early deployment of resources [5,6].In addition, previous experiences from the SARS and H1N1 outbreaks in 2003 and 2009, respectively, have helped the Taiwanese government to effectively improve the strategies for novel pandemic preparedness and to establish a public health response mechanism that will enable rapid action against future crises [7].To date, SARS-CoV-2 has infected >18,000,000 people and caused >690,000 deaths globally [1,2].As of August 23, 2020, 168,216 people in Taiwan had been tested for SARS-CoV-2, of whom 487 were confirmed positive, with an incidence rate of 20.5 per 1,000,000 people [2].Of the 487 patients with COVID-19, 55 (11.3%) acquired the infection via community transmission and seven died, representing a case fatality rate of only 1.4% [2].